Children of Lies
by Forgotten.Thirteen
Summary: Scorpius lies rotting in a jail cell, waiting to be convicted for the murder of Albus Potter, the man he loved. What led the two boys to this startling conclusion? Various Pairings
1. Prologue

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling.**_

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Prologue**

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><p>The bars were cold on the back of his neck and it was quiet aside from the clinking of keys and the breathing of the two men. There was only one cell in the Auror's department and it was used for special cases. Scorpius was fast asleep inside the cell, his legs pulled up to his chest as if to stimulate a protective bubble and his blonde hair peaked out from between the bars. Ron Weasley had been assigned to watch over the youth, but when he had seen Scorpius nod off, he had fallen asleep as well, leaning back against his chair and kicking his feet up on the desk.<p>

A dead body lay somewhere in the Ministry. Neither Mr. Weasley nor Scorpius knew exactly where its location was, but it was there. The body had, in life, belonged to Albus Potter. The man – a boy, really – had been murdered in cold blood, his heart stopped with the Avada Kedavra curse. The suspected murderer had been stripped of his wand and shoved into the cell that was now being watched by Ron Weasley. The only thing stopping the boy from lying in Azkaban that very moment was that the victim's father insisted that he be kept at the Ministry until he was found guilty.

Guilty would be the verdict, Scorpius was sure of it. After all, everyone was convinced it was he and was utterly outraged. They wouldn't settle until justice had been served, but why should they? This was the Chosen One's boy, after all, and he was just a stupid Malfoy. He was no different from his father, or grandfather, and any of the other Malfoys as far as they were concerned. Even as Albus Potter's lover, the public hadn't loved him. Now, they wouldn't even want to give him the time of day.

Scorpius hurt. A bandage was wrapped around his head and the skin under it throbbed painfully. That was the very spot that James Potter had decided to strike him with a clenched fist in revenge, wedding ring and all. The piece of metal had sliced him just above his eyebrow, leaving an impressive wound. After punching him, James had been dragged off the collapsed and crying Scorpius by his father and Quidditch-playing sister. The eldest Potter child would certainly be spending a few days in Azkaban for assault if his father wasn't able to pull his magic with the Ministry. Scorpius, on the other hand, would be lucky to ever be free again.

It was hard to plead innocent when you were the only one found at the scene of the crime and your wand was found to have cast the curse. Nothing, not even the tears he was seen shedding over the body, could make people believe otherwise. He heard the whispers, "Faker! The boy probably never even loved him! You know those Malfoy lot; all rotten to the core," and, "He probably used that poor boy to gain himself fame." It was all sickening and made his head spin. He had adored Albus Potter completely; how dare they say otherwise? All Scorpius had wanted to do was fall asleep and block out all the events of the last two days. Once he was shown to the cell, he did just that.

Suddenly, the door to the room opened, rousing both Mr. Weasley and Scorpius from their nap. The shaggy, dark head of Harry Potter, so very much like his son's, was seen at the doorway. "Ron, Draco and I have come to speak to Scorpius. Is that alright?" Scorpius then noticed the blonde head of his father behind the Head Auror, a more combed, slightly gray, and neat version of his own.

Mr. Weasley gave Harry a large, warm, pitying smile and said, "Anything for you, Harry. You're my best mate, yeah?" Mr. Potter thanked his friend and walked past Mr. Weasley to the cell. Mr. Weasley's smile stayed on his face, although it wavered when Draco Malfoy walked past. Their previous animosity was still very much there, unlike Harry Potter who had befriended the elder Malfoy a few years back.

"You doing all right, Scorpius?" asked Mr. Potter, dropping down into a crouching position before the caged boy could stand.

"Y-yeah. I'm all right. Thank you for asking, Harry – i-if I can still call you that," asked Scorpius nervously, wondering where he stood with Mr. Potter. There was no way he could be sure, especially after James. Harry could just be there to let out his anger.

"Of course you can, Scorpius. Nothing's changed," smiled Harry. Scorpius returned a relieved smile.

The boy's father let out a cough and said, "Hello, Scorpius."

Scorpius startled, remembering his father was there. He had forgotten while trying to understand his place with Albus' father. "Hi, Dad."

The older Malfoy opened his mouth to speak, but quickly thought better of it and just said, "Well, this is a bit of a predicament…" Truthfully, Draco Malfoy never saw himself in this position, especially after hearing Scorpius, throughout the years, rave on and on about the Potter boy. Truly, when he heard that the boy had been murdered, he never would have guessed his own son was the murder. He didn't even know Scorpius had it in him to kill anyone, never mind someone he supposedly loved. He hadn't seen a strain and, after talking to Harry Potter, it was confirmed that neither did his old rival who spent a lot more time with the young couple than he did.

"I'm sorry, Dad! All I've done is just make everything worse for us and Mum!" exploded Scorpius. The last person he had wanted to face was his father.

Draco Malfoy's expression softened and he sighed. "No, Scorpius. Our family's reputation has always been bad. This is no way your fault. The public just lashes out because of their prejudice. I know you're innocent." With nothing else to say to his distressed son, the elder Malfoy turned his back to the cell and walked out of the room.

When he was gone, Harry turned to Scorpius and whispered, "Did you kill my son?"

"No. I would never. Especially not Al," answered the blonde, eyes downcast.

And Harry believed him.

**To Be Continued….**

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><p><em>AN: Hello, I'm Rasko, to anyone I'm meeting for the first time and yes, __I'm actually attempting a long-fic! It's been what, almost 2 years since I've tried to? I'm going to try and stick this one out, though, because it's summer and I have a lot of time to write. My goal, right now, is a chapter a day. I don't know how well I'll be able to do that, but I'll try. So far I have quite a number written up considering when I started this. _

_I hope you enjoyed this and I shall probably be posting Chapter 1 some time tomorrow if I don't hear from my beta/friend who said she'll edit and help me out with this story in general. I feel mean for not waiting, but I really wanted to post this thing and this is for fun, after all. This isn't anything serious._

_Don't mistake me; this story will be long. I will be starting from Albus and Scorpius' meeting in first year and moving forward until the events of this prologue. So I will be covering all seven years of Hogwarts for Al and Scorpius plus a few extra years. It won't be all-seven-Harry-Potter-books long, but it will be pretty long and no, Al and Scorpius won't be sucking face from the very beginning. I mean, come on? Do you really want to see two eleven-year-olds sucking face? Actually, don't answer that. _

_Anyway, please review and tell me what you think. Any type of review pleases me._


	2. A Boy Discovers

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling.**_

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Chapter One: A Boy Discovers**

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><p>The sound of the Hogwarts Express rang through eleven-year-old Albus's ears as he stared at the looming train, luggage cart held tightly in his hands. His father stood next to him, looking for their relatives. Albus wanted to find them, too, especially Rose who was a first year like him, but his eleven-year-old brain forced his eyes to take in everything around him. He has made this trip twice before to see Jamie off, but now it was his turn. He couldn't believe it.<p>

While Albus had been looking about, his father had disappeared from his spot next to him and he had been replaced with Ginny Potter who was yelling, "I think that's them, Al!" in his ear. His head whipped around to see the approaching figures of Uncle Ron, Auntie Hermione, Rose, and Hugo.

"Hi!" greeted Albus, relieved to see his relatives. As his father and Uncle Ron helped load his trunk onto the train, Albus and Rose talked animatedly to each other. Both were deathly afraid about their house placement; Albus wishing to avoid Slytherin and Rose praying to be placed into Gryffindor to please her father.

After managing to get Albus's trunk onto the train, they found Lily and Hugo talking about a similar topic as Albus and Rose had just been, but their conversation was slightly different. Both nine-year-olds were slightly more convinced they would be placed in Gryffindor than their older siblings. Albus heard Uncle Ron call out, "If you're not in Gryffindor, we'll disinherit you, but no pressure."

Next to him, Lily and Hugo were laughing hysterically, but Albus didn't share their mood. Instead, he paled slightly, but no one seemed to notice. His brain seemed to run through different situations, each one worse and worse. In the background, he heard someone mention the Malfoy family who were probably nearby and Jamie running over to scream, "Teddy Lupin is snogging Victore!" as if that wasn't old news. In the future, Albus would realize that his older brother had harbored a crush on Teddy, but at that point in time, all thoughts were about his impending doom. He was just thinking about how he would be sorted into Slytherin and afterwards his parents would personally come down to Hogwarts to disinherit him and he would have to spend the summers living in Hagrid's cabin when James yelled, "See you later, Al. Watch out for the Thestrals," at him.

Al gasped and retorted, "I thought they were invisible? _You said they were invisible!_" James just laughed and turned to say farewell to his parents. Then he turned around and sprinted over to the train, climbing on. He waved good-bye and disappeared into its depths.

"Thestrals are nothing to worry about. They're gentle things; there's nothing scary about them. Anyway, you won't be going up to school in the carriages: you'll be going in the boats," explained Harry. Albus became a little more relaxed at hearing this.

"See you at Christmas," said Ginny, kissing her son.

"Bye, Al," said Harry, giving his son a hug. "Don't forget Hagrid's invited you to tea next Friday. Don't mess with Peeves, don't duel anyone till you've learned how, and don't let James wind you up."

Al looked at his father awkwardly and then mumbled, "What if I'm in Slytherin?" as he saw his mother waving good-bye to Rose from the corner of his eye.

Harry couched down so that he was shorter than his son and whispered, "Albus Severus, you were named for two headmasters of Hogwarts. One of them was a Slytherin and he was probably the bravest man I knew."

"But _just say_-" started Albus, but was cut off by his father.

"Then Slytherin House will have gained an excellent student, won't it? It doesn't matter to us, Al. But if it matters to you, you'll be able to choose Gryffindor over Slytherin. The Sorting Hat takes your choice into account."

"Really?" gasped Albus, eyes growing wide.

"It did for me," admitted Harry.

The doors were starting to close along the train and Albus quickly sprinted to the closest opening. Ginny close the door behind him and Albus started to notice everyone's faces seemed to be looking at his father. "Why are they all _staring_?" asked Albus.

"Don't let it worry you. It's me. I'm extremely famous," said Ron with a grin. Albus grinned back and laughed along with Lily and his cousins. Suddenly, the train began to move and quickly sped away from the station. Once the adults and their too-young-for-Hogwarts relatives were out of sight, Albus quickly went to look for a compartment. He soon spotted James and the blonde head of his cousin, Louis.

"Jamie! Jamie!" called out Albus, "Wait up!"

James turned around and looked at his brother with one eyebrow cocked up. "What is it, little bro?"

"What compartment are you sitting in?"

James rolled his eyes. "You can't _sit_ with us, you know."

"What? Why not?" questioned Al.

"You're a first year. I'm a third year. It's just the principle of the thing. I've got my rep and all that. Can't be seen with a first year too often," said Jamie as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You understand, right Al?"

Albus didn't understand, not at all, but he said, "Okay. I get it, I guess."

"Great. Thanks, bro. You're the best," said James and ducked into the compartment.

"Sorry, Al, but you know how Jamie is. I'm sure you can find Rosie or some of our other cousins." With that, Louis followed Jamie into the compartment. Even Albus' too-nice-for-his-own good cousin didn't want to spend time with him.

Albus sighed and said, "Okay. Come on, Rosie. There's bound to be an empty compartment somewhere… Rosie?" He turned around when he heard no response and saw that his other cousin was gone. With a sigh, the boy decided to go looking for a compartment on his own. He walked down the train and, to his disappointment, it seemed as though all of the compartments were taken by large groups of people. When he was about to give up and go beg Jamie to let him sit with him, he came across what seemed to be an empty compartment. He wrenched open the door and was surprised to see a lone boy, probably a first year, sitting there. His hair was the most shocking shade of blonde Albus had ever seen, a messy mop on his head. His beautiful silver eyes started up at Albus in shock as his hand was stuck deep inside a bag of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans.

"_Wow. He's so beautiful,_" thought Albus. "Errr… sorry. I was wondering if I could sit here?"

"You're that Potter boy," said the blonde, still in shock.

"Um… excuse me?"

"I saw you at the platform," explained the boy, "with your family."

"Oh uh. Okay," said Albus. "_Is he from a family of crazy Harry Potter fans?_

"Oh uh sorry. This must be odd. Please. Sit down," said the boy pointing to the seat across of himself. "My name's Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy."

"Albus Severus Potter. You can call me Al, I guess," said the dark haired boy, feeling a little weird using his middle name, but had done it to follow in the other boy's example. He extended his hand and Scorpius shook it. Albus was a little happy to discover that he wasn't, in fact, sitting with a Harry Potter fanatic. When he and Scorpius' hands met, however, Albus found his skin warm under the touch and he didn't understand why. When Scorpius let him, he quickly retracted his hand and did his best to stifle his blush.

"So what house do you want to be in?" asked Scorpius, a big, warm grin on his face. Albus felt transfixed by the grin and, once again, he didn't understand why. He pegged it down to the fact that Scorpius was prettier than most boys and he just wasn't used to that. After all, Albus found him prettier than Louis who was part veela. Many times he and everyone else he knew found themselves transfixed by Louis' beauty as well as his two sisters, Dominique and Victore, and their mum, Fleur.

For that reason, Albus found himself shouting, "Are you part veela?" at Scorpius.

Scorpius sat there, shock-still, trying to absorb and understand the question. When he finally did, all he could say was, "What?"

"It's just, errr, you're prettier than my cousin, Louis, and he's part veela, so I thought maybe you might be," stammered out Albus, blushing. He realized how stupid he must have sounded.

Scorpius, blushing slightly, laughed, and said, "No. No, I'm not. But uh thanks for thinking I'm pretty, I guess."

"Well, um… I guess I want to be in Gryffindor," admitted Albus, trying to hide his embarrassment by changing the topic. "My family is generally placed there. I'm a Potter and a Weasley so I should be there, right?"

Scorpius sighed and said, "Yeah. Typical. But you don't seem to be so sure you'll end up there."

"I don't know. My brother Jamie is always saying how I'll be in Slytherin and my cousin, Victore, is a Ravenclaw. I guess that means it's not for sure, especially since Victore has Weasley as her last name. I feel like I'm doomed to disappoint my family. I mean, I'm already bullocks at Quidditch and my mum was on the bloody Harpies!" explained Albus.

Scorpius chuckled. "Your dad seems like an upstanding bloke. I'm sure they'll understand. Besides, you'll probably be in Gryffindor, anyway, so there's nothing to worry about."

Albus sighed, looking down at his hands, and said, "Yeah. I guess so. So long as it's not Slytherin, yeah?" Without notice, Scorpius' eyes widened in shock, but he decided not to say anything. He wasn't sure himself if he actually wanted to be placed into his family house. He didn't want to be "just another Malfoy" after all.

"Anyway, what house do you want to be put in?" asked Albus.

"Errr I'm not sure, you know? They all seem so great," said Scorpius with a smile. He tugged at his scarf nervously.

Albus nodded, but then noticed the colors of the scarf: green and silver. "You're not a first year, are you?"

Scorpius looked at Albus oddly. "Of course I am. Only a first year would sit alone like this."

"But you're wearing a Slytherin scarf," pointed out Albus.

"Oh. This?" asked Scorpius, holding up a piece of his scarf. "It was my dad's when he was at Hogwarts. It's really warm, so…" Scorpius trailed off.

"But you want to be in Slytherin, yeah?" asked Albus. He felt terrible about what he had previously said and stupid for not making the Malfoy-to-Slytherin connection. Sure, he had heard the rumors about the house, but Scorpius seemed so nice and wanted to be there. They couldn't all be bad then, right?

"Um… it's complicated, I suppose," admitted Scorpius, shrugging his shoulders. "I don't think you'd understand." The second those words were out of his mouth he regretted them.

"Why not?" asked Al.

"It's a Malfoy family thing, I guess," said Scorpius. It took all of his willpower not to shout, "It's because you're a Potter! Everyone loves your family! Everyone wishes mine were dead!"

"Oh err… okay," said Al, leaving it at that, and turning to the window. Outside, the train rolled past forests and mountains. Albus couldn't fathom how long they had been traveling; just that he was sure a decent amount of time had passed. Outside, the train rounded a lake and just as it had appeared, it was gone. Albus wondered if any magical creatures lived in those woods, but then he berated himself. Those were ordinary England woods. Of course there were no magical creatures.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. "Trolley, dears?" asked an elderly woman. Albus and Scorpius looked at each other and grinned.

Two minutes later, the compartment found itself filled with two of each of every candy the trolley sold. Albus sat there, munching on a liquorish wand, as Scorpius struggled with a chocolate frog package. Suddenly, the package tore open and the frog popped out, landing on Albus' face. Albus started to scream and swat at the frog, but all he really managed to do with squash it against his face. "Oops. Sorry about that," said Albus, slightly blushing in embarrassment.

Scorpius sighed. "It's fine. I don't really like those things, anyway."

"Here, you can have mine to make up for it," said Albus, throwing the package at the blonde. Scorpius caught it and thanked him. "So what card did you get?"

Scorpius reached into his box and pulled out the magical piece of cardboard. "Cliodna." Albus did his best to stifle his laughter, but Scorpius noticed anyway.

"What? What is it?" yelled the Malfoy.

"It's just… Cliodna is a goddess of beauty," snickered Albus. Scorpius proceeded to bludgeon the Potter boy with a pack of Drooble's Best Blowing Gum.

"Anyway, I'm sorry," said Albus after Scorpius was done talking out his frustrations.

"Huh? For squishing my chocolate frog? I'm over that, you know," asked Scorpius, looking at the other boy in confusion.

"No, I mean, for insulting Slytherin. I was out of line," sighed Albus.

"You shouldn't apologize. I'm not in Slytherin yet," said Scorpius with a smile, trying to make Albus feel better.

"Still, your father was in Slytherin and I'm guessing your mother was, too, yeah?" stated Albus. "I basically insulted your family."

Scorpius chuckled. "But that doesn't mean I'll be in Slytherin and I'm not yet. Besides, why do you care? If I'm in Slytherin and you're in Gryffindor – which you probably will be – it's not like we'll be friends. There's that whole house rivalry thing. We'll hate each other."

"Not be friends? But…" said Albus, suddenly finding interest in his lap. He had envisioned himself and Scorpius expanding their friendship from then on. He was enjoying the boys company and the last thing he wanted was to grow to hate him.

"No. We probably won't be. It's a pity, but…"

Albus didn't hear the rest of what Scorpius said. At that moment, he told himself that no matter what, he wanted to be in the same house as the blonde.

**To Be Continued…**

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><p><em>AN: Here we are, then. The actual start of the story. For the first 500 words or so, I used the same dialogue from the epilogue of Death Hallows. I feel dirty doing this, but I want to try to make this work with canon as much as possible. The second half of the chapter was fun to write and I hope I didn't make the meeting too unrealistic. They are eleven, however, and eleven-year-olds make fast friends. I hope I didn't mess up too bad. As for Scorpius not wanted to be in Slytherin, it makes sense. He's aware of the scrutiny of the public towards his family and feels like it's his duty to redeem the Malfoy family. He feels like being placed in another house would help him do it, but at the same time, he knows Slytherin would make his family proud._

_Anyway, chapter 2 will probably be released in a few days. I just wanted to get chapter 1 out the next day because I figured just leaving you all with a prologue would be unfair. And thanks so much for the reviews: 7 in one day? Holy cow!_

_Anyway, please review. I'd like to know what you think on this chapter._


	3. A Boy Sorted

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. Janet Blythe belongs to my friend, pnx626 of deviantart.**_

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Chapter Two: A Boy Sorted**

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><p>A few hours later, the Hogwarts Express came to a screeching halt. Albus and Scorpius, already changed into their Hogwarts robes, gathered their belongings. Albus opened the door to the compartment and stuck his head out. Among the confusion of all the students trying to leave the train, he was able to pinpoint the bushy head of Rose Weasley. "Rose! Rosie! Over here!" he yelled.<p>

Rose turned around, confused, until her eyes settled on Albus. Then, her face broke out into a smile as she sprinted over to her cousin. "Alby! There you are! I couldn't find you after we got on the train!"

"Yeah, I lost you, too, but it's okay because we've caught up with each other now!" grinned Albus. "Wait, there's someone I want you to meet!" The brunette turned around, but his smile quickly disappeared when he saw Scorpius trying to creep away. "Hey! What are you doing?"

"Trying to leave," deadpanned Scorpius, pointing to the door of the train.

"Wait up, then! I want you to meet my cousin, Rosie. Then we can leave the train together!" ordered Albus, quickly catching up to the blonde.

Scorpius dropped his voice down to a whisper so only the other boy could hear and said, "Albus, I told you; we're not going to be friends so it's best that we part ways now."

"Scorpius, no! Like you said, you're not in Slytherin yet, but I'm not in Gryffindor yet, either! I don't want to hate you until I have to hate you. Come on; you'll like Rosie," grinned Albus.

Scorpius sighed; Albus was right, after all. Besides, it wasn't set in stone that he'd be a Slytherin, right? "Okay, Al. Let me meet this cousin of yours and I'll join the two of you up to the castle," complied Scorpius, switching to Albus' nickname to show he'd be friendly until their house placements tore them apart.

Albus grinned and grabbed Scorpius' arm, dragging him over to the waiting girl. "Scorpius, this is my cousin, Rose Weasley. Rosie, this is my new friend, Scorpius Malfoy." Scorpius felt his heart skip a beat at Albus calling him his friend. It was true that they had just met, but Scorpius had been raised as an only child and, with no cousins that he knew of, he had few friends over the years. The idea that he had made a friend made him happy, even if it probably wouldn't last. Albus was a Potter, after all, and Potters belonged in Gryffindor while Malfoys belonged in Slytherin. To be quite honest, Scorpius almost didn't want to be a Slytherin, but he knew he would be.

Rose giggled and Scorpius noticed her grow slightly red, but he had no idea why. "Hi, Scorpius. Nice to meet you!" said the girl with a smile.

"Nice to meet you, too, Rose," said Scorpius, returning her smile.

"No, please call me Rosie. Almost everyone does," explained Rose.

"Okay. Nice to meet you, _Rosie_," said Scorpius, correcting himself. Rose let out another giggle, growing redder.

"Come on, guys! We better get going," said Albus, waving Scorpius and Rose to follow him. Scorpius quickly chased after Albus and Rose followed right behind him, a bit more reluctantly. Pretty soon, though, she had caught up with both the boys and the three of them were laughing together and speculating about Hogwarts as they stepped off the train.

"Firs' years follow me! Firs' years 'his way!" yelled the booming voice that Rose and Albus knew to be Hagrid's. The three of them made their way over to Hagrid and, when the half giant was sure he had gathered everyone, the group made their way down a steep path. When the path ended, the group found themselves to have arrived at the large lake just outside of Hogwarts. Boats were tied down in the water. "Only four'n a boat!" instructed Hagrid.

At that order, Rose, Albus, and Scorpius scrambled into an empty boat. Soon after, a boy with wild, curly blonde hair crawled in. He gave them an awkward smile and said, "Mind if I sit here?"

"Of course not, mate," said Albus with a smile. "My name's Albus and they are Rose and Scorpius."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Spencer," said the boy. "So what house do you lot fancy yourself to be in?"

"I'm probably going to be in Slytherin," sighed Scorpius, dejectedly.

"Oh. Why is that? And why don't you seem happy about it?"

Scorpius started to shuffle awkwardly at that question. Albus saw his discomfort and said, "Well, I don't want to be in Slytherin, either. You've heard about the rumors, yeah?"

Spencer scrunched up his nose. "No, I'm sorry, but I haven't. I'm Muggle-born."

"Oh, well there's a lot of bad wizard that come from that house," explained Rose, speaking for the first time to the new boy. "Most people are afraid of Slytherin for that reason."

"So Slytherin is bad, yeah?"

"Not bad, you see. Just… it has a history," admitted Albus. He didn't know why, but he suddenly had the urge to stand up for the Malfoy's family house, even after badmouthing it for months before arriving at Hogwarts. To confirm that this was strange, Rose looked at him oddly.

Spencer didn't notice any of this, however, and just said, "Oh okay, but I don't think I want to be in Slytherin, anyway. It sounds like a bad house." Scorpius stiffened besides Albus and the brunette shot his new friend a pitying look.

The rest of the ride was in complete silence. When the boats finally docked, the three boys and girl climbed out of their boat. Spencer waved good-bye to his new acquaintances and disappeared into the crowd. Scorpius, Albus, and Rose weren't sad to see him go.

The first years followed Hagrid into the castle where they met a grinning Neville Longbottom. "'ere's the firs' years, Professor Longbottom," said Hagrid. With that, the half giant disappeared through a pair of double doors.

Professor Longbottom scanned the first years and when his eyes fell on Albus and Rose, his smile grew a bit, but he said nothing to them. "Right, well. Welcome to Hogwarts, School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I'm Professor Longbottom, Herbology Professor and Head of Gryffindor. Before I am allowed to let you into the start-of-term banquet, you all have to be sorted. The four houses are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin and while you are here, your house will be almost like your family. The Sorting Ceremony will begin in a few minutes; I'll return for you in a minute." With that, the Professor disappeared through the same doors that Hagrid had previously. With him gone, a silence fell over the students. Rose, Albus, and Scorpius awkwardly glanced at each other, the three of them spilling over with nerves. They had all heard about the Sorting Ceremony from their older relatives, but that didn't make the experience any more nerve-wracking.

Pretty soon, Professor Longbottom returned from the same door he had exited from. "All right! The Sorting Ceremony is about to begin. Get in a line and follow me." The first years all shuffled around and when they were in a straight line, Professor Longbottom nodded and started walking, signaling the students to follow. They walked through the double doors and Albus couldn't help but gasp. He had heard stories about the Great Hall from his older brother and parents, but actually seeing it left him breathless.

From the corner of his eye, Albus saw Longbottom drag out a stool and plop a raggedy, old hat on top of it. "The Sorting Hat," he gasped. Rose and Scorpius, who were standing on either side of him, glanced in his direction. Suddenly, the hat began singing and Albus stood there, mesmerized by the song.

When the hat finished, Professor Longbottom stepped forward, unrolling a piece of parchment. "When I call your name, please step forward and place the hat on your head," instructed the Head of Gryffindor. "Blythe, Janet."

A brown haired girl stepped out of line. She walked over to the hat and gently placed it on top of her head. The hat was silent for a few seconds before belching, "RAVENCLAW!" With a small smile, the girl pulled the hat off of her head and went over to the blue-colored table. When she walked over, the Ravenclaws proceeded to make room for her.

Professor Longbottom began to go through more students, most of which Albus, Rose, and Scorpius didn't know. Albus vaguely heard Spencer being sorted (a "Lawrence, Spencer" from Longbottom and a loud, "RAVENCLAW!" soon after) and was slightly relieved he most likely wouldn't be placed in the same house as the rude boy.

Suddenly, Professor Longbottom called out, "Malfoy, Scorpius."

"Wish me luck," smiled Scorpius at Albus. Albus tried to give Scorpius the most reassuring smile that he could, but he was sure his face rivaled the blonde's shaky grin. Then, with a nod, Scorpius walked away from the line and over to the Sorting Hat, picking it up.

Without the hat at so much touching the top of his head and he certainly not letting go, the hat screeched a loud, "SLYTHERIN!" Dejected, Scorpius put the hat down and slowly walked over to the Slytherin table. The other Slytherins cheered and patted him on the back, but Scorpius' expression didn't mirror their own.

Albus, back near the front of the Great Hall, felt his heart drop into his stomach. His worst fears were coming true; him and Scorpius were going to hate each other. The boy had been so compassionate and kind on the train and the idea that he could no longer be civil to him hurt. He wanted to stay by Scorpius' side. He didn't know why because he had just met the boy, but something about Scorpius made Albus instantly like him.

Names were called, but to Albus they were all a blur. Suddenly, something was jabbed into his side. He looked over to see Rose looking at him angrily. "What?" he hissed, rubbing the spot where Rose had hit him.

"You're being called," hissed the girl. "Uncle Neville just called your name. Twice!"

Embarrassed, Albus stepped off the line and approached the Sorting Hat slowly. He picked up the Sorting Hat and placed it on his head. Instantly, a voice filled his brain.

"_Interesting. Interesting. A Potter, aye? And a Weasley. I know just whe-_" started the hat.

"_No!_" Albus screamed inside his head.

"_No?_" asked the hat.

"_I-I don't want to be in Gryffindor. Please, I want to be in Scorpius' house. I want to stay with Scorpius._"

The hat was quiet for some time and Albus wondered why that was. After a while, the hat finally said, "_I see. That boys means that much to you?_"

Albus felt his face grow red. "_N-no. It's just he's my first friend here and he's was so nice to me on the train. I-I don't know why, but I want to be with him._"

"_Well, you're not much of a Slytherin, but,_" said the hat and then a bellowing, "SLYTHERIN!" rang in Albus' ears. With shacking legs and the urge to cry in glee present, Albus pulled the hat off. He sprinted over to the Slytherin table. His other housemates moved to make room for him, but he had eyes only for a certain blonde who was staring at him in shock. Unable to fight the desire, Albus barreled into him and gathered the other boy into a death hug. When Scorpius finally realized what was happening, he laughed and hugged Albus back.

"Maybe, just maybe, I won't mind being in Slytherin after all…"

**To Be Continued…**

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><p><em>AN: Here we are with chapter 2! For this chapter I had help from my friend. She doesn't have a account on here, but she is pnx626 on deviantart. Thanks for editing and helping me in creating way more OCs than I could have ever asked for!_

_So now we have the Sorting. I've seen these two boys placed in every house at least once in my time of reading nextgen fanfiction and it was a struggle to pick where I should put them, but I decided that Slytherin for both of them would work the best for this story. Personally, I don't see Albus as having Slytherin qualities at all and since his father told him he could pick, I figured this would be probably the only way he could actually find himself in Slytherin; a cute blonde subconsciously persuading him. _

_Anyway, I've decided on an update schedule for this story. From now on, this will be updated every Monday and Friday. This schedule will change once I start school (September 1st this year~ Whoo! I'm going to Hogwarts!), but that's what it is for now (unless there's no way I can be near the computer on an update day, but in that situation you'll get a chapter a day early). I'll be seeing you all Friday!_

_Please review. Your reviews make me smile!_


	4. A Boy's First Day

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. Jude Henry and Raven Zabini belongs to pnx626 of deviantart.**_

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><p><strong>Child of Lies<strong>

**Chapter Three: A Boy's First Day**

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><p>Albus woke up the morning of the first day of term seeing green. It took him a minute to realize where he was and when he did, he rolled himself over and proceeded to get up from the bed. As he rubbed his eyes to dispel any sleep, his dorm mates were all rising as well. Albus had met the other boys upon entering his dorm and had found them an interesting lot. There was Duncan Marks who seemed to be a simple boy, but easy enough to get along with. He was small and had short, brown hair and tan skin, perhaps suggesting he had Mediterranean ancestry, and hazel eyes. Then there was Jude Henry who looked slightly awkward considering he was way too tall for a first year and was certainly the most outgoing out of the roommates. He had blonde hair cut short and dark blue eyes. Lastly, there were the Zabini twins, Nate and Raven. The two of them seemed to be on the same wavelength, always knowing what the other was about to say. They were both dark skinned, darker than Duncan, and had short, brown hair. Nate had dark hazel eyes and was typically louder than his brown-eyed brother.<p>

Albus looked over to his left to see his fifth roommate, Scorpius, rising and stretching. When he caught Albus' stare, he smiled and said, "Ready for our first day?"

Albus grinned back and, with a nod, belted out a, "Definitely!"

Without another word, the boys quickly got ready. After pulling on their robes and grabbing their school books, the two of them made it down to the Great Hall, talking animatedly. Albus had quickly discovered that Scorpius was just as much of an avid Quiddich fan as he was and so the two of them plunged into an in depth discussion about their favorite teams. Scorpius was just starting to sing praises about Puddlemere United when they arrived at the Great Hall. The tables were a pitiful imitation of the first day's feast, but there was still more than enough food. The two boys sat down and, almost instantly, their plates were overflowing with anything their greedy hands could reach for. Just as quickly as their plates were filled, however, they were cleaned.

After Breakfast, Albus and Scorpius sprinted to their first lesson: Charms. They arrived at the classroom just in time and clattered into two empty seats. First year Slytherins were to take Charms with Hufflepuffs so the room was filled with lots of green, silver, yellow, and black. The two boys were just catching their breath when a short man entered the room. All of the students assumed he would be teaching them and proceeded to give him their full attention.

"Welcome to Hogwarts and Charms, your first class of your first term," said the professor in his squeaky voice. "My name is Professor Flitwick. Today, I will teach you the Levitation Charm. Wands out!"

There was loud rustling as the class pulled out their wands. Albus had a hard time locating his. Then, he remembered he had stuck it into the front pocket of his backpack. Scorpius gave him a weird look as he pulled it out and placed it on the desk. When everyone had their wands out, Flitwick began to speak again and the class became enraptured with their first real taste of magic.

After class, Scorpius and Albus were packing up their belongings. "That was amazing!" gasped the brunette. "James told me way too many horror stories about Hogwarts, but now we're learning magic, Scorpius!"

Scorpius laughed and said, "I take it you enjoyed that?"

Albus nodded and said, "Of course! You didn't?"

Sadly, Albus never got to hear Scorpius' response because a dark haired girl in Hufflepuff colors bounced over to them. "Oh my gosh, you're Harry Potter's son!"

"Um… yeah, I am," said Albus awkwardly.

"You must be so lucky! My name's Beth Monday," said the girl, trying her hardest to stifle a squeal.

"Er… Albus Potter. Nice to meet you," said Albus awkwardly.

With a high pitched squeal, Beth ran away towards a group of people, screaming something along the lines of, "I talked to him! He told me it was nice to meet me!" Albus just stared at her, completely perplexed and wondering what had just occurred.

"That won't happen all the time, yeah?" asked Scorpius worryingly.

"I certainly hope not," said Albus with a sigh. He started walking out of the Charms classroom, suddenly wanted to be as far away as possible lest more crazy Harry Potter fans chased after him. Scorpius quickly followed after the suddenly very popular boy, completely jaded.

A week later, as Scorpius and Albus were heading towards the Great Hall for lunch, Albus said, "Hagrid invited me over for tea tonight."

"Have fun. I take it you won't be at dinner then? You know, with curfew and everything?" said Scorpius.

"No, probably not," agreed Albus. Then, after a pause, he added, "Why don't you come with me?"

"What? No! I don't even know Professor Hagrid!" gasped Scorpius.

"So? You're my friend! Hagrid would love to meet you!" insisted Albus.

"Albus, you may have this strange thing with befriending everyone no matter what, but I'm a Malfoy! I'm not exactly on everyone's "Must Meet" list," sighed Scorpius, trying not to blush at Albus calling him, once again, his friend.

"So what? I know that once Hagrid meets you, he'll love you! Please, Scor. Please come," begged Albus, trying his best puppy-dog eyes.

Scorpius groaned and said, "Oh alright already! So long as you never do that face again!"

Albus' face broke out into a large grin and he tackled the blonde, giving him a death hug. "Oh thank you! Thank you! Thank you! You won't regret this!"

"Okay okay, Al! I can't breath! Please let go!" begged Scorpius. When Albus finally released him, he said, "Wait, "Scor"?"

Albus blushed. "Well, I thought it would be a nice nickname, but if you don't want me to call you that, then I won't."

Scorpius blushed as well and said, "No. No, it's okay. It's just that no one has ever given me a nickname before."

"Then you don't mind?" asked Albus excitedly. Scorpius could have sworn the boy had a grown a dog tail and was wagging it madly.

"Not really. I actually sort of like it, I guess," said Scorpius, blushing even more, but Albus, in his excitement, hardly noticed.

That night, Scorpius and Albus made their walk out of the Slytherin common room. Scorpius started walking in the direction of the grounds, but Albus stopped and pointed in the other direction. "Wait. We need to go this way; Rosie's coming with us."

Scorpius sighed and said, "So I'm not really needed then, am I? You have your cousin."

"Not needed? Of course you're needed! Don't be silly," said Albus with a smile. He grabbed Scorpius' arm and started dragging him through the castle. Eventually, he let go and said, "Okay, we can stop. This is where I promised I'd meet Rosie."

A few seconds after he said that, foot steps were heard and Scorpius and Albus spun around to see Rose, adorned in Ravenclaw blue, walking towards them. "Alby! There you are!" she called. Then she realized who was standing next to her cousin and she slowed down, her face red. "Oh! Scorpius is coming?" she asked.

"Oh um I don't have to. I'll just go, then," said Scropius, mistaking her tone for displeasure.

"No!" cried out Albus and Rose.

Scorpius was taken aback. "No?"

"Don't go; of course I want you to come," said Rose, smiling.

"Why on earth would Rosie not want you to come, Scor?" asked Albus, confused.

Scorpius sighed and, realizing that he would not be able to get out of it, said, "Oh okay. Come on; Hagrid awaits!" At that, Rosie giggled and Albus grinned.

"That's the spirit!" said the Potter boy, patting the blonde on his back and pushing him forward.

The three eleven-year-olds made their way out of the castle and onto the grounds. Outside, they saw the roof of Hagrid's hut, smoke coming out of the top, implying that Hagrid was cooking something. Dread grew in the pit of Albus' stomach as he remembered all of the horror stories that were told about Hagrid's cooking. He hoped that Hagrid had kept it tame for their first visit. The three of them made it down the grounds and approached the small building. They stopped in front of the door and awkwardly looked at each other. Albus sucked in a deep breath and knocked on the door of the hut.

"'m comin'! I'm comin'!" called a voice from inside that Albus and Rose recognized right away as Hagrid's. Next to him, Albus felt Scorpius shake.

The door was wrenched open and there stood Hagrid, looking down at them. When he realized who they were, he said, "Oh! 'm sorry! Come'n! Come'n!" The half-giant help the door open for them and the three kids piled on inside. Hagrid sat down at the table in the middle of the hut and Scorpius, Albus, and Rose moved to sit across from him.

"Blimey, Al! You look so much like your da! And you, Rosie! 's like I'm looking at your mother! " grinned Hagrid. Then, he looked at Scorpius as if he was just seeing him and his grin disappeared. "And you! Malfoy! What are you doing here, you bloody git!"

Scorpius' eyes widened and he grappled for the door, but Albus grabbed his arm to keep him from moving. "Hagrid, this is Scorpius. He is my friend and not his dad."

Hagrid grumbled and said, "'right. He can stay. He just looks so much like his bloody father! But any funny business from you, boy, and ya're out of here." Then, under his breath, the large man mumbled a, "All 'em Malfoys are the same, 'ey are."

The mumbled words were not lost on Scorpius and he whispered in his friend's ear, "Al, I'm clearly not wanted here. I really should go!"

"No! Please! Hagrid will see reason," begged Albus, his hand grabbing Scorpius'. He knew it must be odd for him to do that, but his brother used to do it to him to calm him down and he hoped it would work for Scorpius. He was determined for Scorpius and Hagrid to give each other a chance. When he felt Scorpius squeeze back and relax slightly, Albus release a puff of air that he didn't even know he was holding.

After that, it didn't seem like Hagrid was going to insult Scorpius any more and, while they certainly weren't getting along, they were certainly civil. Pretty soon, they discovered it was getting late and Hagrid said, "I 'ink it's time for you three to head back up to 'he castle before ya're caught out of bed after 'ours."

With that, they bid Hagrid good-bye and walked up to the castle in silence. After a while, Rose said, "Well, my common room is this way. I'll see you later."

"Bye, Rosie!" called Al. With that, the Ravenclaw disappeared down the hallway and the two Slytherin boys walked in the other direction.

After a minute or so of walking, Scorpius mumbled, "I'm such a coward."

"You're not a coward. What makes you say that?" asked Albus.

"You saw me back there, Al! I was shaking like a leaf. It was kind of pitiful," sighed Scorpius.

"Scor! A half-giant was screaming at you! I know I would have wet myself; Hagrid can be really scary!" grinned Albus, trying to make his fellow Slytherin feel better.

"Really?" asked Scorpius, his eyes growing wider.

"Of course! Would I say that if it wasn't true?"

Scorpius spent the rest of the walk back to the Slytherin Common Room with his chest puffed out and Albus grinning at how ridiculous his friend looked. Somehow, this look was lost on the very proud blonde.

**To Be Continued…**

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><p><em>AN: Well, here we are at chapter 3, just as promised. Thanks once again to my good friend, pnx626 of deviantart, for looking over this chapter. Personally, I find it hard to write accents so I'm sorry if Hagrid sounds terrible here. I tried..._

_Please review. I want to know what you think._


	5. A Boy Flies

**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. Janet, Raven, and Jude belong to pnx626 of deviantart.**

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Chapter Four: A Boy Flies**

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><p>Quicker than the boys expected, October approached and so did their first flying lesson. It was the week before Halloween when Madam Hooch dragged out all the first years. The Slytherins were to have lessons with the Gryffindors, something that James had already warned Albus about in his letter of constant complaints during his first year. In the chilly October afternoon, the students gathered around brooms and waited for their flying instructor to begin class. Albus stood next to Scorpius, watching the elderly woman shuffle over to them.<p>

"Welcome to Flying Lessons. Now, please stand over your brooms. When I give the instruction, command the broom to rise by shouting "Up!" Ready… begin!" ordered Madam Hooch.

All around, the students were shouting commands at their brooms to no avail. A few had managed to get their brooms to roll around on the ground. A small Gryffindor, Danny Harris, even had the broom hit him in the face a few times and slam back down. Blood started poring from his nose as he clutched it and Madam Hooch ordered one of his housemates to see him off to the Hospital Wing.

Albus himself also wasn't having an easy time with the broom. He was like many of the others who were unable for the broom to move at all. His parents and older brother claimed that the broom had moved easily for them and Albus truly was no good with flying, but this was just embarrassing. As he was about to give up, he turned to Scorpius and said, "See? I told you I'm-" but stopped himself when he saw Scorpius' broom levitating peacefully in the air.

"What?" asked the blonde. Albus just shook his head and looked back at his broom to hide his shame. After about five minutes of trying, Albus finally managed to get his broom up just a little and grabbed it, deciding that it would be good enough. As he looked around, he noticed he was one of the last ones to get ahold of his broom.

"Now, I want you to sit on your brooms and lightly kick up and hover for a few seconds when I blow my whistle," ordered Madam Hooch. There was a shrill ringing sound and then the students proceeded to fly up. A few of them managed to stay hovering; Albus fell backwards off his broom. Scorpius saw him fall and started laughing as though it was the funniest thing he'd ever seen.

"You find this funny, huh?" said Albus with an attempted glare, but the hidden smile wasn't lost on Scorpius.

"No, Al. I find this hilarious," corrected Scorpius.

"Oh shut up, you skilled-at-flying prat," grinned Albus. Scorpius grinned back and touched down, holding out his hand to help Albus up. The Potter boy wasn't having any of that, however, and after grabbing his friend's hand, he gave a sharp pull, dragging Scorpius down to the ground. The blonde landed face-first into the grass next to Albus.

"Ow! What was that for, Al?" complained Scorpius.

"You know you deserved it," grinned Albus.

"Yeah, but that doesn't make you any less of a git!"

Suddenly, a shadow fell over them and the two boys looked up to see the angry face of their flying instructor clearing her throat in rage. "This is not proper broom handling, boys, so please do tell what the two of you are doing, hmm?"

The two first years awkwardly stood up and, apologizing swiftly, picked up their brooms. Then, they stared at the ground shamefully, wondering if they were to receive a detention for their behavior. "I'm giving you two a warning; any more rough-housing and it's detention tomorrow night for the both of you!" With that, Madam Hooch walked off to face the rest of the class.

The rest of the class Scorpius and Albus barley spoke to each other, fearing the threat of detention too much. As soon as class ended, the two boys sprinted from the field almost as if hell itself was chasing after them. When they entered the castle, they stopped running and leaned against the wall, panting heavily. "I thought she was gonna murder me the whole time! Did you see her?" gasped Albus. "And I could tell that she was clearly disappointed, but I can't help that I can't sit on a broom properly!"

Scorpius grinned and taunted, "Never thought I'd see the day where a Malfoy was better at Quidditch than a Potter-Weasley spawn."

"Ah shut up!" said Albus, shoving Scorpius. The blonde shoved back and then the two boys proceeded to shove-fight all the way back to their common room. When they arrived, Scorpius shoved Albus in through the door and, seeing a pair of empty couches, sprinted to grab a seat. Albus chased after him, grabbing the seat next to the blonde. When he was able to calm his racing heart, Scorpius reached into his backpack and started pulling out books. "What are you doing?" asked Albus.

"Studying. We have homework, you know," answered Scorpius.

"You want to do homework? Now?" whined Albus.

"It's the perfect time, Al," answered Scorpius.

"Scor, you're so lame," sighed Albus but decided on pulling out his books and doing his own homework. That's when he noticed a black haired girl sitting across from them, peering over a magazine. "Uh, hello? You are?"

The girl slammed the magazine down into her lap and said, "Haley Nott. I'm a second year."

"Right," acknowledged Albus. "I'm Albus Potter, Al for short. This is Scorpius Malfoy."

"I know who you two are," deadpanned Hayley.

"Oh? Uh, of course," said Albus awkwardly.

Haley then grinned and said, "You two both look like you've seen a ghost. I don't bite; I'm just in awe, I suppose. Sorry for staring."

"In awe? Of what?" asked Scorpius, speaking to the girl for the first time.

"Just I never thought it could be possible for a Malfoy and a Potter to be friends. The fact that you're in Slytherin is also pretty odd as well, Al," answered Hayley.

"Oh? Really? I-I guess so," stammered Albus, remembering how exactly he had been placed into the house. He hoped that the blush on his face wasn't that noticeable. He still had not told anyone that he had picked to be in Slytherin and it would be something he'd carry to his grave. No one needed to know that he had been so taken with Scorpius that he had followed him into Slytherin.

"I don't think it's that strange," said Scorpius, doing his best to save Albus. "After all, if Al is in Slytherin, that means that he's not a normal Potter."

Hayley looked at him critically and then said, "I guess so, but you look like a mirror image of him. Minus the glasses and if you ignore the slight freckles on your face, of course."

"Oh. Really? I hadn't noticed," lied Al. Of course he had noticed; almost everyone he knew outside of his immediate family had commented on his appearance. At those moments, he felt completely jealous of James, who looked more like his namesake than their father.

"Hadn't noticed? Hmm… peculiar," said the girl. Then, she decided to switch topics. "So how did you two become friends?"

"What is this, an interview?" hissed Scorpius.

Hayley, embarrassed, quickly said, "Oh sorry. I guess I'm just curious. Most of Hogwarts is. You two are practically famous!" Then, awkwardly, she added, "I think I better go; I've embarrassed myself enough as it is."

Albus and Scorpius just looked at each other and then slowly turned to her as she stood up. "You don't have to; you were sitting here first," said Albus. "We'll move if you want."

Hayley settled back into the chair and said, "No, it's alright. I'll just go back to my magazine. Forget I ever said anything." She stared back down at what was in her lap and proceeded to get completely immersed in what she had been previously reading.

Albus looked back at Scorpius and said, "So you said something about studying, yeah?"

Scorpius grinned and said, "I knew you'd see my side of things." He opened the book that he had ignored for the girl's interruption. "I'm thinking we should start with Potions, alright?"

Pretty soon, their first Halloween at Hogwarts arrived and Hayley became, not quite a friend, but an almost permanent fixture in the Slytherin Common Room. They would see her practically every time they were in there. When approaching her about the matter, she claimed, "I'm in here all the time. This is my common room, too, you know. That was just the first time the two of you noticed me." With that, the second year walked away with a huff, clearly offended. Albus and Scorpius didn't care much as they still didn't understand her.

Halloween day, Scorpius and Albus spent the day wondering what the feast would be like and if it would rival the start-of-term feast. The castle had been decorated with flaming streamers, large pumpkins, candles, and live bats in preparation; the two boys couldn't wait to see the Great Hall itself. Transfiguration, the first year Slytherins' last class of the day, was clearly an annoyance for their teacher who tried her best to calm down the overly excited eleven year olds.

At the start of class, the Slytherins and Ravenclaws filed in, talking animatedly about the coming feast. Scorpius and Albus, like always, ran to their seats next to each other and Rose quickly sat down behind them, the only student who was actually looking forward to the lesson. Professor Harkness, who taught the class, walked in, not looking forward to teaching the very rowdy students. She walked over to her desk and stood behind it, tapping her wand on the edge to get the class's attention. "Settle down, class. The Halloween feast hasn't started yet," ordered Harkness.

It took a few minutes, but the class eventually got quite. Professor Harkness noticed some students were slumping on the desk and looked completely bored, but she decided that it would have to do for now. "Wands out. Today I will teach you Switching Spells," ordered the professor. "Does anyone know what makes Switching Spells so special?"

Most of the class looked at each other awkwardly as Rose's hand shot up in the air. Without even being called on, the girl said, "Switching spells switch two objects simultaneously."

"Correct, Rose. Ten points for Ravenclaw," answered Professor Harkness. The Weasley beamed with pride while her housemates flashed her proud grins and a select few Slytherins groaned.

When class ended, Albus and Scorpius filed out of the classroom with the other Slytherin boys, all excited to be free from Transfiguration. Raven quickly sped up to the front of the group and said, "Did you see that girl? "_Switching spells switch two objects simultaneously._ Oh! Look at me, Rose Weasley, and marvel how smart I am! No one can compare!"" The twin started laughing and the other Slytherins joined in. The only one who wasn't laughing was Albus and he was about to stand up for his cousin when a voice was heard behind them.

"Oh, you think you're so funny, Zabini?" hissed Rose. The Slytherins turned around to see Rose standing there with Janet, whose name Albus remembered from the Sorting Ceremony, and a boy whose name he didn't know.

"Not just funny, hilarious and honest, of course," grinned Nate. "Not that you would notice what's wrong with your behavior, you self-absorbed twat." Roaring laughter was heard from Raven, Duncan, and Jude. Scorpius had stopped laughing at this point and Albus was giving the twins a death glare.

"You Slytherins make me sick," hissed Rose and walked away, her friends following.

""_You Slytherins make me sick! _I'm Rose Weasley and everyone must love me!"" mimicked Nate, clutching his side from laughing so hard. Raven, Jude, and Duncan were also doubled over, tears pouring from their eyes they were laughing so hard.

Albus just shook his head and tugged on Scorpius' arm. "Come on. Lets get out of here." Scorpius nodded and followed Albus away from the other boys who were too busy laughing to notice their disappearance.

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><p>Scorpius and Albus walking into the Great Hall, excitement written all over their faces and the previous event suddenly disappeared from their minds. Suddenly, Albus was shoved to the ground. "Hey! What the hell?" screamed Albus at his attacker. He was suddenly grabbed by his shirt and yanked into the air, coming face-to-face with his older brother.<p>

"No, Al! What the hell is wrong with you? What is this I hear about you and your Slytherin friends picking on your favorite cousin?" spat James.

"It wasn't me! I swear!" gasped Albus. "I would never; you know I love Rosie!"

"Then why the hell did Rosie run past me earlier, crying and screaming, "I hate Al and his stupid Slytherin friends!" What the hell happened, Albus?" screamed James.

"If I may-" interrupted Scorpius, but James quickly turned on him.

"Shut up, you stupid Malfoy! You were probably the one who made Rosie cry the most!" roared James.

"Leave him alone, James! Scorpius didn't do anything! It was the stupid Zabini twins!" defended Albus.

"W-what's going on?" asked a voice and the three boys turned around, seeing Rose with her face stained with tears.

"Rosie! I'm so sorry! I'll punch Nate and Raven in the face later, okay? I swear I was not okay with what they did! I'm not a jerk like they are!" apologized Albus.

"Is this true? I'll be more than happy to knock some sense into him," offered James.

"I-it was the others, mostly. I didn't hear Albus say anything," answered Rose.

James dropped Albus and turned to Scorpius who was still in shock from the older Potter's earlier outburst. "Come here, then! Let me kick your ass for making my younger cousin cry!" Scorpius' eyes grew wide and he lifted up his arms to protect himself.

"No! James! It wasn't Scorpius, either!" gasped Rose. Then, blushing, she turned to Scorpius and said, "You weren't laughing, right?"

Scorpius nodded and said, "You're Al's family and you're a nice girl. What those guys did was terrible."

Rose nodded and said, "See James?" James seemed skeptical, but he sighed and turned away from the group and walked away.

"Hey, were are you going? The feast is that way," called Albus.

"I'm not going to the feast," retorted James.

"Where are you going?" asked Albus, but James didn't answer and disappeared around the hallway corner.

"We should follow him," suggested Albus and slowly walked down the hall after his brother. "My brother does crazy thing sometimes and I don't want him to do something he shouldn't." Scorpius sighed, knowing Albus was right, and chased after his friend, leaving the upset Rose behind.

The two boys follow the third year Gryffindor through the castle until they saw him stop in an unknown hallway. Scorpius and Albus hid back and peaked out at James, wondering why he stopped. There were no Slytherins in sight, after all. The boy begun to pace back and forth, mumbling something. Suddenly, a door appeared and James quickly entered it. Once he was inside, the door disappeared.

"The Room of Requirement," gasped Albus.

"The what?" asked Scorpius, looking at the brunette oddly.

"The Room of Requirement. My dad told me about it; it's a room that appears whenever you need it," answered Albus, "but what could Jamie possibly be doing in there? Getting getting something to hurt Raven and Nate with?"

"Does it matter?" begged Scorpius. "Come on; it's none of our business at this point. We should go tell the professors what happened."

"No, Scor! He's my brother and our dorm mates are responsible for what happened to Rosie! Now come on!" insisted Albus. "I just want to know what he's up to."

Albus walked past the door three times, mumbling to himself. Then, the door appeared and Albus waved Scorpius over. Tentatively, the Malfoy walked over to stand by Albus. The brunette grabbed the doorknob and slowly pushed it forward a crack, enough so that anyone occupying the room wouldn't notice but enough so that both he and Scorpius could peak inside.

Suddenly, a strange voice inside started talking, "You need to relax, Jamie, and I can help you. It won't wear off for a few hours; you have nothing to worry about."

"I know, but it's still weird. Part of me doesn't think this is such a good idea. Especially not today," answered another voice that clearly belonged to James.

"Stop being nervous. We've planned this for months. You want it, I want it. What better way to do this is there? You won't ever get the real thing, you know," said the voice.

"I know, but still. I should be hurting the people responsible for what happened to my cousin, not mucking around here," grumbled James.

"Perhaps, but you should clear your head first. You don't want to end up doing something rash," persuaded the voice.

"Okay. I guess you win," sighed James. Suddenly, he and the owner of the strange voice came into Scorpius' and Albus' line of vision.

Albus gasped.

It was Teddy.

**To Be Continued…**

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><p><em>AN: Oh boy. Here we are. Here is the chapter that I almost didn't post today because I couldn't get it right. For the longest time, it was craptastic and I didn't know how to fix it. I finally got it to a decent point which is why it's up on time, but I still am a little unsure of how I tied in the end. The end is important for future chapters so I had to put it there, but I'm still pretty unsure of it._

_To those of you who commented on Hagrid last chapter, I'd just like to say that the reason I had him lash out was because Draco had been pretty nasty to him in the books and I can't imagine even Hagrid not having some prejudice for the Malfoy family._

_Anyway, thank you so much to all of my friends who I've been bugging for the past few days with this. Really, if you had seen this chapter a mere few hours before it was posted, you would have cringed, too._

_Thank you for reading and please review!_


	6. A Boy's Snowball Fight

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. Jude and Raven belong to pnx626 of Deviantart.**_

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Chapter Five: A Boy's Snowball Fight**

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><p>Three hours later, Albus barged into the Slytherin first year's dormitory with Scorpius awkwardly following him. To suggest Albus was mad was an understatement; the boy was ready to kill. The brunette marched over to Nate and ripped the magazine that he was reading out of his hands. "What the hell, Zabini? Did you honestly think making my cousin upset would be a good idea? Did you think I would be <em>okay<em> with that?"

"Give me back my magazine, Potter!" hissed Nate.

Albus threw the magazine across the room and into the corner of the dormitory. "No, Nate! Not until you answer me!"

Nate sighed and said, "I didn't think it was that big of a deal. I was just taking the mickey, you know?"

"Rose is a bit of a know-it-all, anyway. She needs to be humbled every once in a while, Al," pointed out Jude.

"No one, asked you Jude! Just, all of you, don't treat Rose like trash. She's my cousin and you'll have to answer to me if you do," hissed Albus.

Duncan snorted. "We're not scared of you, Al. You're a bit tiny."

"Maybe not, but in case you weren't aware, my older brother is James Potter. You know, the third year? Gryffindor beater?" bragged Albus. The four offending Slytherin boys' faces began to pale.

"I'm sorry, Al. You're right. We'll stay away from Rose," said Duncan. "Just don't call your brother on us! We're friends, right?"

Albus grinned. "Of course."

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><p>"Are you staying for Christmas break?" asked Scorpius almost two months later. Halloween had come and gone and Christmas was quickly approaching. Albus hadn't seen his older brother since the Room of Requirement at Halloween and he wasn't sure he wanted to. He wasn't exactly sure what had occurred and why Teddy was at Hogwarts, but seconds after Albus realized who had been there with James, he had tugged on Scorpius' arm and pulled him away from the room, running as fast as possible. Albus had wanted to get away from the room and wished to pretend what had happened to Rose was the only problem. Scorpius had no idea who the man was, but knew the image in front of him was not something he should be seeing and so let Albus tug him quickly away. The two boys had arrived at the feast late, but were very much grateful to be there. As for their roommates, the six of them quickly returned to being friends and were even closer than ever since they all agreed on being polite to Rose Weasley. Duncan had even decided to get to know the girl and Albus was hoping that they would become friends.<p>

Now, Halloween was a distant memory Albus was working to forget and all of his thoughts were on the coming Christmas break. "I don't know yet. I'm thinking about it. You?" he answered his friend.

"I am. My parents are taking what they claim to be a much needed vacation so I'm stuck here," sighed Scorpius. "My father said he didn't think I'd mind and that he assumed I'd probably want to spend Christmas here this year anyway."

"What about the rest of you?" asked Albus to the rest of the boys.

"Me and Nate are going home. Mum makes the best Christmas turkey," grinned Raven.

"Home for me as well. Off to visit some cousins," answered Jude.

"What about you, Duncan?" asked Albus.

"Don't know yet myself. Probably will head home as well; there's gonna be no one here during Christmas anyway," answered Duncan.

Scorpius frowned and Albus didn't miss it. "If you're going to be alone, I'll stay here with you. Mum and Dad won't mind; Jamie stayed his first year, too." Suddenly, Albus remembered Halloween and clamped his mouth shut, blushing.

Scorpius, quickly wanting to steer them away from a conversation about the older Potter boy, said, "Don't stay here for me; I'll be fine."

"Don't count your chickens before they hatch; I still have to send a letter to my mum to make sure I can come home," warned Duncan. "You might not be alone just yet."

"Why wouldn't you be able to go home?" asked Scorpius.

"Mum likes spending vacations with boyfriends," answered Duncan, shrugging

"What about your dad?" asked Scorpius.

"Dead a month before I was born. He was an Auror," explained Duncan, but refused to say more after that even when the boys shared their condolences.

"Well, I've still decided that I'm staying with you, Scorpius. That way I don't have to waste so much parchment on writing to you," said Albus with a grin. "Really, I'm saving Galleons this way. I ought to thank you."

"What, no writing to us?" whined Nate.

Albus grinned and said, "Of course! Don't be stupid; but I'm still saving on the parchment I would have used on Scorpius." The unspoken words among them were that it was clear that he would have written to Scorpius the most. Still, it seemed to satisfy the twin and he relaxed against the foot of his bed.

"I still think you shouldn't be staying. Christmas is a time to spend with family," said Scorpius.

"It's also not a time to be alone. My family will be fine; do you know how many relatives I have?" grinned Albus, trying to reassure Scorpius that it really wasn't an inconvenience. Scorpius sighed, knowing he wouldn't be able to win. He was also very grateful to spend Christmas with his best friend.

"You're lucky, though. You get to be here for the Christmas feast. I heard it was marvelous," envied Raven, eyes shinning.

"Really? What's so special about the Christmas feast?" asked Duncan.

"Seriously? You've been to two Hogwarts feasts and you still don't get it? There's enough food in Hogwarts to feed all of Great Britain!" sniggered Nate.

Duncan blushed in embarrassment. "Sorry. I thought you meant that the Christmas feast was different than the others."

Nate snorted. "Of course it's different. It's the _Christmas_ feast. "

Duncan was about to retort when Albus cut him off. "Okay guys. Lets not fight over something this stupid. You guys have fun at home; me, Scor, and possibly Duncan if he stays will write and tell you guys all about it." There were mumbled words of agreement that left Albus satisfied.

"Well, I'm gonna go to bed. We have class tomorrow; Christmas isn't here just yet," said Scorpius standing up and stretching. All the other boys nodded in agreement and clamored into their beds.

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><p><em>Albus,<em>

_I hope you're all right staying at school over the Holidays. We miss you terribly, but James was pretty relentless about it his first year, wanting to see the feast and everything. Of course we'll allow you to do so although not happily. There's always next Christmas._

_The only thing is we're wondering why you haven't written to us until now or responded to our letters. We didn't like finding out your house placement from Jamie. If you thought we'd be ashamed of you, that's silly. We told you before you left that we'd still love you and still be proud of you no matter what house you end up in. Slytherin is just as good a house as any._

_Uncle Ron and Auntie Hermione also send their love._

_Love,_

_Mum and Dad_

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><p><em>Dunkie,<em>

_Mummy's sorry, but she'll be taking a cruise with Marcus this Christmas break. You remember me telling you about him? He's such an amazing bloke; I know you'll love him. You'll meet him next break, promise!_

_Have fun at Holy Wart or whatever it is._

_Love,_

_Mummy_

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><p>Christmas break arrived and the school was quickly cleared out. Albus knew James, Louis, Victore, Fred, Dominque, and Molly were all leaving out of the Potter-Weasley clan. Rose had told Albus that she was staying for the same reasons he was so he expected to see a lot of his favorite cousin over the break.<p>

Albus, Scorpius, and Duncan said good-bye to their roommates as they emptied out the dormitory. After the last of Jude's blonde hair was seen exiting out the door, the three boys filed out of the Slytherin Common Room to wander around the castle. They found Rose standing in the hallway, staring at a book. Scorpius couldn't help but grin; even he wasn't that bad.

"Rosie!" yelled Albus, tackling his cousin into a hug. The girl squeaked in response, suddenly finding herself in a death grip belonging to Albus Potter.

"Al! You scared me!"

"Whatchya doing?" grinned Albus, letting her go.

"Just reading. Wanted to look up something in this book," answered Rose.

"Hey, Rosie! Why don't you come with us? You can read later!" suggested Albus.

That was when Rose noticed who was with her cousin and grew bright red. "Um, that's alright, Al. You just go on ahead without me. You don't need a Ravenclaw ruining everything."

"Ruining everything? Don't be silly, Rosie! We'd love to have you come with us!" laughed Albus, grabbing her hand and pulling her over to the confused boys. "Rosie is coming with us! None of you have any say in the matter!"

Neither of the other two boys had any words of complaint. "So, we were heading outside, yeah?" Duncan asked, addressing Albus and Scorpius.

"Outside?" mimicked Rose, blinking her eyes in confusing.

"Yeah. It's the first snow of the year. It the perfect time to be outside," answered Scorpius.

Rose grew redder at the blonde speaking. "O-oh. Okay. That make sense then."

The four first years made their way down to the grounds in silence. Or rather, Rose staying deathly quite the whole time, not know what to say and deathly afraid she would say something she shouldn't. Duncan said a comment or two every so often, but it was Scorpius and Albus that were completely engrossed in their conversation. When they reached the outside, the first thing that happened was that Scorpius got pelted in the face with a ball of snow midsentence. Scorpius whipped his head around as Albus cackled like a hyena to find Duncan standing there, whistling calmly. Grinning, the Malfoy bent down and picked up his own ball of snow and pelted it back at the boy. "Oh, it's on, Malfoy!" taunted Duncan. He grabbed Rose's arm who was standing next to him and said, "Come on! You're on my team," dragging her away from his dorm mates.

"Bring it, Marks!" yelled Scorpius and he and Al ran in the opposite direction. All of a sudden, a snowball war broke out between Scorpius, Albus, Duncan, and Rose. Even Rose, who had felt completely awkward before, was getting into the fight. She chucked snowball after snowball at Scorpius and Albus, but sadly most of them missed. The only one whose aim was even worse was Albus, but he kept a grin on his face and made completely inappropriate-for-an-eleven-year-old taunts at Duncan and Rose. The whole time, Scorprius couldn't help but laugh hysterically at his friend and so the two of them quickly got buried under Duncan's pelting snowballs.

"Give up, Malfoy, Potter?" grinned Duncan, running over to the snow-covered and shivering boys. Rose followed a few steps behind him.

"Now don't be silly, Marks. Of course not; there's still a war to be fought, but as I'm almost to the point of not being about to feel my arse cheeks, you win this battle," complied Albus.

"We should head inside then. Before we all catch a cold," suggested Rose. "Maybe get something warm to eat or drink from the kitchens."

Albus grinned and said, "Of course! You're brilliant, Rose! What would we do without you?" He grabbed Rose and Scorpius by the arms and dragged them to the castle, calling back to Duncan, "Come on, Duncan! I only have two hands!"

Duncan ran after his receding classmates, mumbling something about, "Stupid Potters," and, "I'll win, just you wait!"

When the four of them arrived at the castle, Albus let go of Rose and Scoprius' hands and they made a beeline for the kitchens. They arrived at the portrait of the bowl of fruit and Rose reached up, awkwardly tickling the pear. Duncan looked in awe as the pear turned into a doorknob and Rose opened the door, holding it open so the boys behind her could walk in as well. As soon as they were in, a House-Elf approached them. "Hello. How can I help you?"

"Do you have something warm? Like hot chocolate?" asked Albus.

"Right away, sir! Four mugs of hot chocolate for Harry Potter's son and friends," said the Elf, passing on the message to the other elves. At the "Harry Potter's son" comment, Albus blushed red in embarrassment.

Pretty soon, the elves brought back the mugs of hot chocolate and the four first years took them, thanking the elves. They walked out of the kitchens, sipping on their hot chocolate. They started walking and after a while, Rose said, "Um where are we going?"

"Err Slytherin Common Rooms, I guess," said Albus. Then he added, "There practically no one in there; it's fine if you come in."

"No, it's okay. I'll see you all later," said Rose and walked away in another direction. The three boys shrugged and continued on their way.

Albus called back, "See you, Rosie!"

When they arrived back at the entrance to the Slytherin common room, Duncan suddenly said, "I just remembered there's something I have to do. You two go on without me." With that, the tan boy sprinted away from his fellow Slytherin first years. Scorpius and Albus shrugged and walked into the Slytherin Common Room, running up into to their dormitory to change into drier clothes. After changing and feeling much warmer, they crawled back into the Common Room, planning to curl up in front of the fire. The common room was bizarrely empty; the only ones there were a few seventh and fifth years crying over OWL and NEWT notes and three fourth year boys.

The two of them plopped down in a couch in front of the fireplace, Scorpius being transfixed by the flames that were flashing in his eyes. Albus curled up next to him, placing his head on the blonde's shoulder. Scorpius was taken by surprise, but didn't move to brush Albus off. Instead he leaned back into the couch, his eyes drooping. There was a comforting quiet between the two of them as they drank in the warmth of the common room and each other. After a while, Albus broke the silence by saying, "You know, this is my first Christmas without my family, without Grandma Molly's crazy cooking."

Scorpius sighed. "I told you that you should go home."

"I don't mind. It's just different," answered Albus. "Besides, knowing Grandma Molly, she'll probably send me so much food for Christmas and between that and the Christmas feast, I guarantee everyone who's away won't be able to recognize me when they get back."

"Well, we can't have that. Guess I'll have to steal some of that food that will be sent your way," laughed Scorpius.

"I'd be insulted if you didn't," grinned Albus. "Now, what would you do without me here this Christmas break?"

"I hate when you have a point," grumbled Scorpius. He was definitely grateful that his friend was here, even if he felt guilty knowing that it was because of him that Albus was spending Christmas without his family. Scorpius wanted to make it up to him, but didn't know how.

"I'd probably miss Hogwarts too much, anyway, I would spend Christmas in my room, writing letter after letter. I'd have to put up with Jamie being an arsehole and Lily being a pest for a few days. It would be terrible," grumbled Albus. "Believe me, you're gonna hate Lily once you meet her. I'm sparing you the pain until our third year."

"She can't be too bad. She's your sister, after all," replied Scorpius.

"Yeah. My annoying, won't-leave-me-alone sister," sighed Albus.

Scorpius laughed and, since he did not know Lily Potter personally, he decided to say nothing else. The silence once more fell upon the tired boys and Scorpius felt himself starting to nod off. He decided that sleeping in the common room would be a bad idea and turned to tell Albus, but he found the brunet fast asleep on his shoulder. Scorpius sighed and mumbling, "Guess I can't move until this idiot gets off me." With that, Scorpius leaned back against the couch and fell into a blissful sleep.

**To Be Continued…**

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><p><em>AN: Here we are at chapter 5. I apologize if the beginning is a little awkward since I was tying up a plot line from the last chapter. I also didn't have any help with this chapter so if anything is wrong, you're welcome to scream at me. I don't really want you guys to hate the roommates; they are just kids and kids can be mean sometimes. I'm trying to show that they can and will grow out of it. Sorry if it just makes everything confusing..._

_Please review and thank you for reading!_


	7. A Boy's Cloak

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling.**_

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Chapter Six: A Boy's Cloak**

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><p>Christmas day came and right at the crack of dawn, Albus was up and about, much to the annoyance of his roommates. Duncan, grumbling something about, "Five in the morning? Go to hell!" rolled over and went back to sleep. Scorpius, also not too happy to be woken up so early, managed to drag himself out of bed and over to his stack of presents. He picked up one of his presents and carefully tried to open it, ignoring the excited ripping sounds coming from Al's direction. His first present turned out to be a Quidditch book and some home cooking from his parents. Scorpius picked up one of the cookies and attempted to eat it, but then decided that would be impossible. It was clear the food in front of him were the creations of his mother and not the family's house elves. Under that, there were some robes from his grandparents. The rest of the pile seemed to be filled with random trinkets various friends had managed to dig up for him. He was just about to open Albus' gift when the brunette gave a scream of delight. "What is it?" yelled Scorpius in shock.<p>

"Look, Scor!" grinned Al, holding up a cloak. Scorpius didn't see what was so special about it till Albus threw it over his head. Before Scorpius could react, the boy had disappeared.

"What in the world is that?" gasped Scorpius.

"Come on, Scor! It's an invisibility cloak! My father said he was giving something cool for Christmas my first year, but I didn't think it was this!" gasped Albus, pulling the cloak off of his head and reappearing. "He used to keep this under lock and key when I was little!"

'That's really cool! Can I see it?" asked Scorpius. Albus nodded and handed Scorpius the cloak. The blonde wrapped it around his shoulders and his body disappeared. "I'm a decapitated floating head! WOOOOOO! Fear my bodylessness!" screamed Scorpius, waving his hands around in a feeble attempt at looking scary.

"Shut up, both of you!" screamed Duncan from behind the curtains of his bed. "It's too early!"

Albus and Scorpius stood up and ran over to Duncan's bed. Albus pulled open the curtains while Scorpius screamed, "Come on, Duncan! It's Christmas! Get up! You have to see what Albus got!"

Duncan sat up in the bed, giving both of his roommates a death glare. "Fine, but I hate both of you." With Scorpius and Albus grinning madly, Duncan dragged himself out of bed and started to open his presents, grumbling. Pretty soon, however, he stopped complaining and became genuinely excited for his presents. Finishing with their presents, the three boys quickly dressed and started to walk out of the dormitory.

"Al, what are you wearing?" asked Scorpius, staring at the green sweater that his friend had donned.

Albus looked down at his chest. "What? This? It's just an old tradition. Every year, my grandma knits us sweaters for Christmas."

"Isn't your family huge?" gawked Scorpius.

Albus shrugged. "So?"

Duncan cut in, "Wait, Al, what was that cool present that Scorpius was talking about? Don't tell me it's your stupid sweater?"

Albus stopped walking momentarily and said, "Oh yeah! I forgot! You have to see this!" He reached into the pocket of his robes and pulled out the gift. "It's my dad's invisibility cloak! He gave it to me for Christmas!"

"An invisibility cloak? Damn, you're so lucky, Al!" gasped Duncan. "Can I see how it works?"

Al passed Duncan the cloak. "Put it on."

Duncan threw the cloak over his shoulders. "Why isn't it working?" he asked.

"Cover yourself with it. It only makes what's under it invisible," instructed Albus.

When Duncan disappeared, he screamed, "Woah! This is so cool, Al!" He pulled the cloak off and passed it back to Albus. The cloak was then returned to Albus' pocket.

Breakfast played out the same as it had all week; the students were instructed to gather around one table with the Hogwarts staff. The staff sat on one side and the students on the other. Aside from the three Slytherin first year boys, Rose, and the fifth and seventh years, there were also Spencer and Danny who had become acquaintances over the break, and other various members of the four Hogwarts houses.

"Merry Chrsitmas!" called Spencer, seeing the newcomers and standing up from his seat. He had a red santa hat perched on his head and a red scarf around his neck. Next to him, Danny wore a red and green Christmas sweater that may have rivaled Albus' in embarrassment.

Rose got up from her seat and bounced over to the group of boys, saying, "Merry Christmas!" Albus noticed that she wasn't looking at Scorpius, but decided not to comment on that.

"Merry Christmas to you, too!" said Albus with a grin, giving his cousin a hug.

"How weird is it not to be at Grandma Molly's?" asked Rose. "This is my first Christmas not at the Burrow!"

"Yeah, same here," sighed Albus, gliding the group over to sit down at the table, "but it's nice at Hogwarts."

"I see Grandma Molly sent you a sweater, too," commented Rose, referring to Albus' green sweater and her own blue one.

At that point, Scorpius could tell he was becoming a third wheel and turned to talk to Duncan. It felt slightly strange to be left out of a conversation by Al, but he decided that he shouldn't be selfish. Al was allowed to have a conversation with whomever he wanted; especially his own cousin who Scorpius figured hated him. Eventually, Scorpius decided to focus on his food. Just as he was finishing his eggs, he felt a tug on his sleeve. He turned to see Albus looking at him, concern written on his face. "What's wrong, Scor?"

"Nothing. I'm fine. Just a little tired," answered Scorpius with a smile.

"Lets go play with the cloak then! Just the two of us!" grinned Albus. Scorpius couldn't help but agree and let Albus drag him out of the Great Hall, leaving his half eaten food behind. When they were outside of the hall, Albus pulled out the cloak and said, "Get under it with me; we're going to explore the castle!" Albus threw the cloak over himself and then held a part open for Scorpius to get under.

The two boys, completely invisible, shuffled down the hallway together. They arrived at the moving staircases after some awkward walking. "Where do you want to go?" asked Albus.

"What floor haven't we been on? This castle is so huge. There must be a few," suggested Scorpius.

"I don't know, but up it is. This way," said Albus. He grabbed Scorpius' wrist and dragged him upwards through the staircases. The arrived at the highest floor and started to walk around. There seemed to be an abundance of Gryffindor students mulling around and Scorpius grew uncomfortable.

"Um, why is there a lot of Gryffindors, Al?" commented Scorpius.

"Hmm? Oh yeah. The Gryffindor Common Room is somewhere around here," answered Albus.

"We're not going to sneak into the Gryffindor common room, are we?" asked Scorpius.

"Of course not, Scor. Now come on," said Albus, pulling the blonde down a side hallway. "I just want to explore."

At the end of the hallway, the two boys found what looked to be a trapdoor in the ceiling. Albus stared up at it and said, "I wonder where that leads. Lets check it out."

"We really shouldn't, Al," sighed Scorpius. "I don't trust that door. Who knows where it goes?"

"Oh, stop being a scaredy-cat," chuckled Albus, pulling the cloak off of them. Then, he reached up and pulled down the trap door. It swung down with a creek, dropping down a ladder. "Well, up we go," grinned Albus, grabbing the ladder and pulling himself up. When he managed to hoist himself up, he stuck his head back down the trap door and said, "You coming, Scor?"

Scorpius sighed, "I kind of have to, don't I?" and followed up after his friend. Albus grabbed his arm and pulled him up. Suddenly, Scorpius found himself in a very peculiar room. The room was circular and filled with many tables and armchairs and smelled of various sweet-smelling fumes. The walls were lines with various teacups, crystal balls, and other various instruments. "I think we're in the Divination classroom, Al," hissed Scorpius. "We should go."

Suddenly, a dreamy voice called out, "Who's there?" and a strange women glided into the room. She was draped in colorful robes and jewelry all of which sparkled. A large pair of spectacles was perched on her nose and made her eyes look gigantic as she looked at the two boys.

"Ah, we were just leaving. We got lost and-" said Scorpius, but he stopped talking when he saw the woman glide over and grab Albus' face and study it.

"Harry Potter? No, you're too young. Plus, Harry didn't have these freckles and wore glasses," commented the woman.

"I'm his son, Albus Potter," answered Albus, completely shocked at the woman grabbing his face. He wanted desperately to squirm out of her grasp.

"Why aren't you at home with your lovely family?" questioned the woman.

"I wanted to stay at Hogwarts for the winter hols," answered Albus.

The woman nodded and said, "I sense a great struggle in your distant future. Do take care." Then, she released Albus and walked over to Scorpius, studying him. The blonde shrunk back in fear of the strange woman in front of him. "Please come in. I'm always happy to have guests. I'll prepare some tea." With that, the woman turned around and began to clear a table.

"No, it's alright, ma'am. We were just leaving," insisted Albus, not wanting to spend another moment in the woman's company.

The woman looked up at them, clearly offended by what Albus had said. "Nonsense. You sit right down. Where else do you need to be?"

"Well, there's the Christmas feast," suggested Albus.

"That can't be for another few hours. Sit, sit!" insisted the woman. Seeing that they had no other choice, the two boys walked over to the table and plopped themselves down in the chairs. The woman brought over another chair and a tea set. Sitting down in the chair, she pulled out her wand and with a tap, the pot began to brew. "You two are only first years, correct? I haven't seen you in any of my classes, after all."

"Err yes. What do you teach, ma'am?" asked Albus, feeling as though what he asked was silly. Even Scorpius turned to look at him with his eyebrow raised.

The woman smiled and said, "My name's Professor Trelawney. This is my Divination classroom."

"I haven't seen you around the castle, Professor. Why is that?" asked Scorpius.

"I prefer not to. The noise of the castle clouds the Inner Eye," answered Trelawney as if that explained everything. "Do you two have an interest in Divination?"

"I suppose so," said Scorpius. "I haven't really thought about it." He hoped that would work as a response since he was against sharing what he actually thought of the subject.

"Well, I hope you two pick Divination next year when you pick your courses. Learning to open your Inner Eye is a wonderful thing," said Trelawney. "I had your father, Albus, and your uncle as well, although your aunt wasn't ever able to understand Divination properly and left us her third year. Quite a pity, but she wasn't very good with her Inner Eye. In any case, I hope you follow in your father and uncle's path."

"Well, I'll have to look at the choices. I don't want to over clutter my schedule," responded Albus. "I'll definitely keep it in mind, though." Suddenly, there was a loud noise and the two boys practically jumped out of their seats.

"Ah, that's the tea," stated the professor, picking up the kettle and filling the three cups on the table. "Please, drink."

Calming down, Scorpius and Albus looked at each other awkwardly, wondering if she had poisoned the tea. However, she was a professor so the probability of her doing that was most likely very low. With a shrug, Albus reached over and took a sip of the tea. With a nod, he said, "That's very good tea, Professor. Thank you." Understanding what Albus meant by that comment, Scorpius picked up his cup and started drinking.

"Thank you, Albus. I rather like it myself," said the woman.

The three of them talked about various topics, mostly about what classes the two boys enjoyed the most. Albus answered with Defense Against the Dark Arts and Professor Trelawney airily remarked, "Just like your father." Scorpius said he couldn't decide between Potions and Astronomy. "Astronomy? We may find a seer in you yet," commented the professor.

Scorpius was the first to finish his tea. "Would you allow me to look at that?" asked Trelawney. Scorpius hesitated, but in the end passed the cup over to her. "I see a sun and what is this? A cross?" gasped Trelawney.

"What does that mean?" asked Scorpius in wonder.

"A sun means great happiness, but a cross is certainly not a good thing. It predicts trials and suffering," explained Trelawney, eyes wide in shock.

With that, Albus grew angry. "Excuse us, Professor, but I think it's time for us to leave. Come on, Scor!" said Albus. He grabbed Scorpius' arm and pulled him over to the trap door, flipping it open.

"Wait! I didn't read your cup, Albus!" called the professor, but the two Slytherins were already out of the classroom.

"What the hell was that?" screamed Albus once they were out of Professor Trelawney's earshot. "If that is Divination, then it is total rubbish! And did you hear what she said about my auntie?"

"Calm down, Al! I know Divination's rubbish, but all she did was read my tealeaves. Most of Divination is pretty grim and predicts terrible things. I'm just happy she didn't tell me I was going to die," said Scorpius.

Albus shrugged. "Still. What a hack! What trials and suffering could she be talking about?"

"I don't know, Al," sighed Scorpius, "but come on. The feast has probably started already. We were gone a long time."

Donning the cloak once more, the two boys made their way back to the moving staircases. This time the hallway was completely devoid of people; they were all down at the feast. Scorpius and Albus shuffled down the staircases down to the bottom floor. Albus pulled off the cloak and stuffed it in his pocket. Then, they raced into the Great Hall. When they entered, they noticed that everyone was already deep in their food. Rose saw them enter and jumped up from her seat, running over. "Al! Scorpius! Where have you been? You two disappeared this morning!"

"We were around, I guess. We were walking around the castle, mostly," answered Albus.

"Well, come and eat! The turkey is amazing. Almost as good as Grandma Molly's," grinned Rose. "You, too, Scorpius!" She grabbed the blonde's arm and pulled him over to the table. Albus, completely confused, followed them.

The table has a large turkey situated in the middle. Around the turkey were various bowls of Christmas pudding, cranberry sauce, crumpets, eggnog, gravy, and other delicious dishes. Within minutes, Albus and Scorpius had filled their plates and were cramming their mouths with as much food as they could. The words of Professor Trelawney were quickly forgotten as the two boys became enamored with the feast. After eating their fill, the food disappeared and in its place sat a large cake with other various desserts. The boys' stomachs suddenly made plenty of room and they continued gorging themselves. Rose just stared at them in awe, wondering about how exactly male stomachs worked.

With the feast finished, Albus and Scorpius stood up from their seats and hobbled out of the Great Hall, their stomachs about to pop. Rose followed after them, grumbling, "Why did you two eat so much?"

"Why didn't you eat this much? That food was incredible," exclaimed Albus.

"I didn't want to eat to the point where I couldn't move," proclaimed Rose.

"It's still worth it. That was delicious," grinned Scorpius.

Rose blushed and mumbled, "Whatever. See you two later." With that, she turned around and walked away, presumably to her common room.

"What's her problem? Does she hate me?" asked Scorpius, staring at the disappearing girl.

"I don't think so, Scor. Rose isn't one to hate people. I'm sure once she gets to know you better, you'll be thick as thieves," explained Albus.

"Whatever," grumbled Scorpius. "I don't get girls. Expecially not her."

**To Be Continued…**

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><p><em>AN: Here we are at chapter 6! Writing this made me slightly nostalgic for winter. It's so hot here!_

_Please review and thank you for reading!_


	8. A Boy Caught

**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. Jude and Raven belong to pnx626 of deviantart.**

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Chapter Seven: A Boy Caught**

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><p>Christmas break ended and it end brought back Hogwarts students in hordes and they all brought their Christmas presents to show off to their friends. Albus saw James running through the hallways with Louis and various friends, carrying bags of what seemed to be Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes products. Victoire seemed to be such a ray of sunshine, most likely the effect of spending two weeks with Teddy, that she greeted Albus when she passed him. Albus wondered how Teddy could cheat on his wonderful girlfriend and swore that the next time he saw him, he's punch Teddy Lupin in the face.<p>

Albus and Scorpius found themselves using the invisibility cloak more and more, pulling it out and running around the castle whenever they had free time. They made it around the whole castle, but made sure to stay away from the seventh floor; they didn't want to run into Professor Trelawney again.

Albus and Scorpius, along with Rose, took to visiting Hagrid after hours with the cloak. Over time, the peaceful giant had begun to accept Scorpius. The blonde, Hagrid had found, was polite and pleasant, unlike how his father had been in his time at the school. After a few weeks of visits, it was as if Hagrid had never insulted the young Malfoy.

One day, near the end of January, when Scorpius felt he was comfortable around Hagrid and Albus had long forgotten about the incident, Scorpius asked, "Hagrid, what do you know about Professor Trelawney?"

"Professor 'lawney? Why do ya ask?" asked Hagrid.

Scorpius looked at his companions and saw Rose looking confused and Albus nodding his head in approval. "Albus and I ran into her during Christmas break. She told me I'd have to go through trials and suffering or something. She was really strange."

"'ell, I dun know much 'bout her, but I'd heard mixed 'in's. Some say she's loony, others have 'eard her give accurate predictions," answered Hagrid. "'ever it is, I wouldn't give it any more though'."

Hagrid's words didn't do much to calm down Scorpius' worries, but he knew there was nothing he could do. Albus, on the other hand, had remembered about the Halloween incident and was now going crazy over it. Getting over him nerves of being afraid to face James, the boy grew angrier and angrier over seeing the signs of Teddy and Victoire's continued relationship. Albus hadn't understood exactly what had occurred in the Room of Requirement, but he knew that Teddy hadn't approached James in a friendly way. He felt disgusted with knowing that Teddy was cheating on Victoire with none other than James.

Albus had taken to obsessing over finding out what was going on with James and often dragged Scorpius with him. Albus would trail James, but after about a week, all he could figure out was that James loved spending time with Louis and an older Gryffindor whose name Albus didn't know. Granted, Albus had never heard about this boy, but there was nothing strange about it. Albus didn't exactly write home about everyone he spent time with, either.

Valentine's Day was approaching and the older years seemed to be slowly going insane. Albus and Scorpius, whose only experience with Valentine's Day up to that point were their fathers bringing flowers to their mothers, were quite confused about the whole situation. It also seemed that Louis was slowly disappearing from James' side the closer it got to Valentine's Day and James always seemed to be around the older Gryffindor. The boy would always be with James no matter where Albus found them. At first, Louis was always walking a few steps behind them, but over time, the blonde Weasley disappeared.

On Valentine's Day, the hallways of Hogwarts were covered in pink. Dwarves, or at least that's what Scorpius had claimed they were despite Albus not being sure, fluttered over their heads, delivering cards to the students. As Al and Scorpius were making their way through the castle, something dropped on both of their heads.

"What's this?" asked Albus, picking up an envelope.

Scorpius looked puzzled as he pulled open his own card. The card was an onslaught of pink and red, but the strangest thing was that it was signed at the bottom with, "From, Albus."

"Scorpius, uh?" asked Albus, looking at his own card. Scorpius looked at the card in Albus' hand and blushed, putting two and two together.

"I decided to send you a card; you are my best mate. I see you decided to do the same," explained Scorpius.

Albus blushed as well and then smiled. "Great minds think alike, I guess. Thank you so much, Scor!" Scorpius couldn't help but grin back.

Either way, his friend's generosity didn't keep Albus' mind away from wanting to find out what was going on with James. After lunch, Albus saw James walk off with his friend. The younger Potter tugged on Scorpius' arm and, throwing the Invisibility Cloak over them, dragged him after James. James and the Gryffindor arrived at the hallway where Albus knew sat the Room of Requirement. James looked around to make sure no on was following them while the other Gryffindor paced back and forth, pulling out a vile and chugging it. The door to the room appeared and James was pulled inside. Albus and Scorpius quickly ducked inside as well before the door disappeared.

"Glad to have you all for myself, Jamie," said the Gryffindor, inching towards James. "It's been far too long, love."

"Okay, Brett. Lets not be too hasty. Wait until the potion kicks in," insisted James, backing up away from the dark haired Gryffindor.

Brett stepped back and ran a hand threw his hair with a sigh. "Is it really necessary, James? I thought I was growing on you."

James' expression hardened. "Don't be stupid," he hissed. Suddenly, Brett's face began to change and the boy started to get taller and his chest broadened. His face started to morph and, after a minute or so, Albus found himself staring at a perfect copy of Teddy Lupin. As soon as Brett had finished changing, Albus saw James grab Brett by the neck and pull him down into a kiss. Albus felt his eyes widen and Scorpius gasped next to him.

"Al, we shouldn't be here," whispered Scorpius. Unfortunately, it wasn't quiet enough for Brett not to hear and the Teddy Lupin look-alike picked his head, his glare aimed at where Albus and Scorpius stood hidden.

"Who's there? Show yourself!" yelled Brett, pulling out his wand from his trouser pocket. James pushed Brett off of him and walked over to stand in front of Albus and Scorpius. Albus tried to stifle his breathing, but it was useless; James still groped for the cloak and pulled it off of their heads when he had found it.

"James, what is this?" hissed Brett, looking at the two first years with a disgusted glare.

"Just my stupid, little, Slytherin brother and his butt buddy, Malfoy, being somewhere they shouldn't," spat James, glaring at the younger boys. He tossed the cloak at Albus' head and hissed, "Get out!"

"No!" screamed Albus, startling everyone in the room. "Explain to me what is going on! Who is he and why did he suddenly turn into Teddy?"

"That's none of your business! Get the hell out, Al!" ordered James, jabbing a finger at the door.

"No, James! I want to know what is going on! I'm not moving until you tell me!" screamed Albus.

"Fine. Be that way," shrugged James. He grabbed Albus and threw him over his shoulder. "Brett, get the other one," James called back. With that, the older Potter marched over to the door and pulled it open, throwing Albus out and Scorpius followed soon after. "Now stay out," ordered James. He was about to slam the door shut, but Albus moved fast and shoved his leg between the door and doorframe.

"Albus, don't make me kick you in the face!" growled James.

"James, I want to know what is going on! I'm worried about you," insisted Albus.

"You wouldn't understand," spat James.

"Try me!" insisted Albus.

"Okay, fine. I'll come find you on Saturday and we'll talk about it," complied James. As an after thought he added, "Don't bring the blonde."

Albus didn't feel satisfied, but he knew that would be the best he could expect for the time being. James reached for the door again and this time Albus let him, stepping back. James and Brett disappeared back into the Room of Requirement.

"I feel like I'm intruding on something I shouldn't be," sighed Scorpius.

"What do you mean, Scor?" asked Albus, looking oddly at his friend.

"Al, this is between you and your brother. It doesn't involve me," answered Scorpius. With that, the blonde turned around and started to walk away.

"No, wait Scor!" called Albus, chasing after the Malfoy. "I don't know what is going on with my brother any more than you do, but I'm seriously worried! I don't think I can deal with this myself!"

"I'm sorry, Albus, but I can't. This is way over my head. I know nothing about your family, but I'm getting wrapped up in it. If you need help, go talk to Rose," said Scorpius, feeling terrible with every word that came out of his mouth, but he knew he was doing the right thing. Albus didn't need him. "I think it's best if we were no longer friends." Scorpius started to pick up speed and this time Albus didn't chase him. Instead the brunet stood there in the hallways, clutching the Invisibility Cloak to his face, faint sobs escaping his lips.

When dinner came around, Albus sat far away from Scorpius and said very little, doing nothing but staring into his plate. Duncan and Jude walked over to sit next to Albus, leaving the Zabini twins to spend time with the sad and worrying Scorpius. The two boys tried to talk to Albus and attempted to cheer him up, but quickly realized that they weren't going to get Albus to say anything. The boy refused to utter a word, never mind explain to his friends what was troubling him. Jude patted Albus on the back and him and Duncan walked back to Scorpius, giving up on the Potter boy for the time being.

Albus was hardly offended by his friends leaving him; in fact, he had wanted them to leave. He wanted very much to be left alone to wallow in his sadness. James had treated him like garbage and, while they had their squabbles, Albus had never believed James to hide anything of this magnitude from him. James had always been the loving and overprotective older brother, getting angry whenever someone mistreated him. Albus knew that whatever had occurred in the Room of Requirement was not a good thing.

Then there was Scorpius, the best friend that he adored and had spent every waking minute with since getting on the Hogwarts Express in September. He knew that he was asking too much for Scorpius to help him, but the fact that the blonde no longer wanted anything to do with him was too much to bear. He hardly understood why Scorpius had simply tossed him aside.

Albus was pulled out of his thoughts when a bag was slammed down on the ground and someone sat down across from him. The brunet looked up to see Haley Nott, her long, dark hair done up in pigtails. She looked at him as if she was trying to figure something out. "I don't really want company," said Albus.

"Well, I'm not moving so you might as well tell me what's wrong," said Haley, "or, you know, don't, but I have a feeling awkward silences aren't your thing."

"There's nothing to talk about," answered Albus, glaring at her.

Haley scoffed, "Really? Then why is pretty boy Scorpius all the way over there and you're here? I was under the impression that you two were practically the same person."

Albus growled, "You're annoying."

Haley smirked and said, "I try, Al, I try. So what's the problem in paradise?"

Albus sighed, knowing he wouldn't be able to get rid of her. "Basically, Scorpius feels like he shouldn't be friends with any Potters or something. I think he thinks that as a Malfoy, he has no right."

Haley looked to be deep in thought for a few minutes. Albus decided that he would go back to his food and let her run what he said through her head as many times as she wanted. The next time Albus looked up at her, she made motions to signify she was about to say something, but instead she just stood up and walked away. Albus sighed and mumbled, "Great. You're a load of help." He didn't expect her to say anything useful to him, anyway, but he didn't appreciate the reaction he did get.

Finishing dinner, Albus left the Great Hall as gloomy as ever. He intended to crawl into his bed and just fall asleep, not even considering cracking open his books to get his homework done. As he was about to head in the direction of the Slytherin common room, someone called out behind him, "Al! Al, wait!"Albus spun around to see Louis fighting through the crowd towards him. When Louis managed to get to Albus, he gave his cousin a big smile.

Albus attempted to give Louis his best smile in returned. He was truly happy to see his cousin; he hadn't had a proper conversation with Louis in what felt like forever and perhaps Louis was just as scared for James as he was. "Hey, Louis. How are you?"

"I'm well. Actually, there's something I wanted to ask you," admitted Louis, his fingers toying with his bright yellow Hufflepuff tie in nervousness.

"Okay. What is it?" asked Albus.

"Have you seen anything weird about Jamie lately?"

Albus breathed a sigh of relief; he was happy that there was someone he could talk to about the matter. "So you've noticed it, too, huh?"

"Yeah. James has been acting very weird ever since that fifth year, Brett, showed up in his life. I haven't spoken to him in three days," admitted Louis. Albus frowned; there was something strange there. James and Louis had adored each other ever since diapers and, while Albus understood that they could have been drifting apart, especially because of the different house placements, Albus also knew that James would never deliberately push Louis away. The James that Albus knew would gladly beat down the entrance to the Hufflepuff common room and drag Louis out if he felt that him and the blonde weren't spending enough time with each other.

"Louis, Jamie is scaring me," admitted Albus.

"Is there anything you know? Anything at all? Please tell me. I want my cousin back," pleaded Louis.

Albus hesitated, wondering if he should tell Louis what he had seen. He decided that since Louis wanted to know what was going on with James as much as he did, it would be unfair to keep him in the dark, but he also knew that he couldn't tell Louis what he knew in the crowded hallway. "There's something I need to tell you, but not here. People might hear," said Albus.

Louis gasped and said, "Albus Severus Potter, you're wonderful! Now come on!" The Weasley grabbed Albus' arm and tugged him down a secluded corridor. "I think here should be okay. There's no one coming and we'll be able to know if someone is."

Albus nodded and said, "This afternoon, I followed James to the Room of Requirement and saw him with the fifth year, Brett. Brett took some potion to look like Teddy and I don't exactly know what they were going to do because I was caught and thrown out, but it didn't look good. James told me he'd talk to me this Saturday, but that's all I know."

Louis' eyes widened. "No…" he gasped. Then, he turned and quickly walked away, calling back, "I have to go, Al. See you later." Albus sighed, having been left alone once more.

The Slytherin walked back to his common room, this time uninterrupted. When he entered, he planned on making a beeline to his dormitory, but had to stop because Haley was urgently waving him over. With a sigh, Albus walked over and plopped down in the seat next to her. "What? I'm tired, Haley," he groaned.

"I was going to tell you that Scorpius is obviously pretty damn unhappy with this whole turn of events, but I suppose you don't want to hear it," sighed Haley. This caught Albus' attention.

"No, I want to hear it, but what do you mean?" asked Albus.

"I meant what I said; Scorpius feels terrible about hurting you. It's written all over his face," answered Haley, rolling her eyes.

"Then why did he?" spat Albus. "Look, this is pointless. Can I go?"

Haley rolled her eyes once more. "Scorpius probably didn't want to upset you, but he knew he had to end the friendship."

"How do you know any of this? Have you talked to him?" questioned Albus with a glare.

"I'm good at reading people," was girl's response. Albus sighed and got up, walking towards his dormitory and away from the strange second year. Haley called after him, "I wouldn't do that. He's in there," but Albus hardly cared. He wanted his bed more than anything at that moment.

Walking into the dormitory, he noticed its two current occupants right away. Jude was sitting on the ground with no shirt on and was twirling his wand in his right hand. Scorpius was sitting on his bed, his knees pulling up to his chest. It was clear that Albus had interrupted a conversation, but he couldn't care less. He shuffled over to his bed and plopped face-first into it, reviling in how good it felt.

"Al, are you alright?" asked Scorpius.

Albus picked his head up and glared at Scorpius. "Just leave me alone, Malfoy. Why do you care, anyway?" With that, Albus closed the awning of the bed, cutting himself off from the other two boys.

**To Be Continued…**

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><p><em>AN: I am sorry that the chapter was a bit late. This week was a bit hectic with computer time as my brother hacked into my computer, changed the password, and won't tell me what it is. Basically, I have to be an angel to him and he lets me on. I can always use my dad's laptop whenever he brings it home from work, but it doesn't have my files so here lies the problem with posting. For this reason, __I'm taking a week off from posting and I want to regroup and write chapters like crazy. Thanks to the random access to my files, I'm falling more behind then I would have liked. Also, from now on, my new posting schedule is going to be every Friday as school starts very soon for me. I suppose that means that the next chapter is going to be posted on the 27th, but because we leave on a bit of a depressing part in the story, I might, for one last time, post next Monday. Don't be surprised if I don't. I almost didn't post today, but I wanted to mention this to you all so you're not surprised._

_Please review. I'd love to know what you think._


	9. A Boy's Trauma

**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. Raven and Jude belong to pnx626 of Deviantart.**

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Chapter Eight: A Boy's Trauma**

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><p>Saturday couldn't come fast enough for Albus. He found that the days all blurred together. Without Scorpius as his best friend, he fell into a strange depression where he no longer focused on what he was doing and just went through the motions. He still saw Scorpius in class and at mealtime, but the two boys didn't interact unless they had to. Despite wanting to keep to himself, he found himself spending more and more time with Haley. The older Slytherin girl insisted on tailing him and sharing constant crazy ideas on how to save Albus' friendship with Scorpius, all of which Albus didn't want to hear.<p>

Aside from Haley, Albus spent more time with Rose, but unlike Haley, it was willingly. Albus didn't know why he spent more time with Rose – perhaps it was the nice contrast of blue – but his cousin has always a pleasure to be with when he was going through hard times. Every Transfiguration and History of Magic class, he made sure to sit next to her. After the first day of classes without Scorpius, Duncan had taken to sitting with them as well and stayed there even for classes without the Ravenclaws.

Albus woke up Saturday morning and, when realizing what day it was, fell out of bed quickly, grappling for his stuff. "Shut the hell up, whoever's doing that! I'm trying to sleep!" groaned Nate, and Albus looked up in surprise.

"Sorry," apologized Albus, "but it's morning."

Nate groaned again, "It's Saturday. Shut up!"

When Albus was sure Nate wasn't going to say anything else, the boy quickly grabbed his clothes and tiptoed into the bathroom. Upon entering the bathroom, he quickly jumped into the shower. As he finished throwing his clothes on, he walked out of the stall to come face-to-face with a pajama-clad Scorpius, clutching a bundle of clothes to his chest. Albus blushed, not expecting to run into his ex-best friend. "I was just leaving. Excuse me," mumbled the brunet.

"No, it's alright. There's enough room in here for the both of us," responded Scorpius. Albus' mind couldn't help remembering the mornings him and Scorpius had playfully fought for the sink. Without saying another word and averting his eyes from Scorpius, he ran out of the bathroom, the blonde watching him oddly.

When Scorpius was sure Albus would not come back, he turned to look in the mirror and didn't like what he saw. Scorpius' hair stuck up in all different directions and heavy bags were under his eyes. His cheeks were sunken in and his silver eyes were much duller than usual. He hadn't slept properly in over five days, worrying over Albus. He hated that Albus hated him, but he knew it was for the best. However, no matter how much he told himself that, he didn't believe it.

Splashing his face with water to wake himself up, Scorpius pulled on his clothes and stumbled out of the bathroom. Back in the dormitory, he saw the Zabini twins dragging themselves out of bed and Jude just beginning to sir. "'morning, Scorpius," greeted Raven.

"'morning, Raven, Nate, Jude. You want me to wait for you lot?" asked Scorpius.

"I'm alright," mumbled Jude sleepily. "I'll probably be awhile. Don't wait for me."

"Yeah, go on, Scorpius," answered Raven. "You're probably hungry. We'll meet you there."

"What about Duncan?" asked Scorpius, but his own question was answered when he looked over to Duncan's bed and found his roommate fast asleep. "Alright then. See you guys later."

Scorpius walked out of the Slytherin common room and into the Great Hall. He found that very few people had arrived for breakfast and the only ones at the Slytherin table were a group of fourth and fifth years. There was also Albus sitting at the end of the table, Haley sitting across from him. Scorpius felt his heart clench at seeing Albus, but resisted the urge to walk over to him and sat in the middle of the table, preparing to wait for his roommates alone. Every so often, he would sneak glances over at Albus and Haley in what he hoped was a subtle way.

About ten minutes later, Scorpius saw Haley stand up from the table and walk towards him from the corner of his eye. Scorpius expected Haley to completely walk past him, but instead the older girl stopped in front of him.

Haley knew that Albus' eyes were still trained on her and that urged her to say, "What am I going to do with you? You're acting like such an idiot."

Scorpius looked straight at her face and said, "Excuse me?" with a puzzling expression.

"You and Albus: you're both being idiots," declared Haley.

"And why is that? Albus deserves a better friend than me and I don't deserve him," answered Scorpius.

Haley rolled her eyes. "This is what I mean." With that, she walked away.

Down the table, Albus stared at the exchange, perplexed and wondering what Haley had said to Scorpius. Different things flashed threw his mind and his face flushed slightly. He wondered if Haley had told Scorpius that he missed him. He certainly hoped not. When Scorpius turned his head to stare at Albus, the brunet's face flamed up in embarrassment for being caught. He quickly looked back at him food.

Albus was just about to finish his breakfast when a hand came to rest on his shoulder. James leaned over to say, "Lets talk now, okay Al?" in his ear.

The younger Potter boy quickly swallowed the contents in his mouth and nodded, saying, "Okay. Lets go." Albus stood up and followed James out of the Great Hall, finally relieved to find out what was going on with his brother. James led him out of the castle and onto the grounds. They walked in silence and Albus wondered if James was going to force him to walk forever. Eventually, they reached the Black Lake and James led him over to a tree near the edge and sat down, patting the spot next to him to indicate that Albus should sit. Albus complied and took the seat, happy with James' choice of scenery. As much as he loved being under it in the Slytherin common rooms, he enjoyed looking over it in the fresh air much more.

"What do you want to know?" asked James, breaking Albus out of his thoughts about the lake.

"I thought that was obvious; what was that all about in the Room of Requirement?" demanded Albus.

James sighed. "Where do I begin? It's a pretty long, complex story." He didn't want Albus to hear it mostly because he felt that it wasn't something someone as young as his brother should know about. Still, he had to tell Albus something or else the younger boy wouldn't stop pestering him.

"How about starting with Brett? Who is he?" asked Albus.

James sighed. "I met him last year some time around March. I guess it's a bit odd for a fourth year to want to get so close to a second year, but I didn't think about that at the time; I was too busy basking in the glory of someone older than me thinking I'm brilliant. For the most part, our friendship was a normal upper classmate, lower classmate relationship. That was until Brett saw Teddy at King's Cross and saw that I had hugged him despite him not being a family member. In the middle of July, he owled me, telling me that he wanted some of Teddy's hair and that I should get it for him. When I got the hair, I owled him back, asking him what he needed it for. He never answered that summer, but around the middle of October, he invited me to the Room of Requirement, telling me to bring the hair. When I met him there, he had a cauldron set up with a potion bubbling in it."

"What did he want with the hair?" asked Albus, eyes wide in curiosity.

"Well, I asked him that same question and he told me to throw the hair in the potion. After I put the hairs in, he told me that he knew that I was in love with Teddy and that he'd tell everyone that Harry Potter's son is a flaming queer. No matter how much I reasoned with him and told him Teddy was just a really close family friend, he wouldn't listen. I asked him what he wanted to keep him quiet because I knew everyone would believe him. His answer was that he wanted us to meet every so often in the Room of Requirement," explained James.

"Meet? That didn't look like just meeting, Jamie," stated Albus, skeptically.

"Well, he didn't say, "meet" exactly, but anyway. After he said that, he leaned towards the cauldron and took a sip of the potion. In no time, it wasn't Brett that was standing in front of me, but Teddy. Turns out, the potion was a Polyjuice Potion which allows the user to look like anyone they want. I ended up screaming and, telling him anything that he wanted to hear, ran out of the room as fast as I could," explained James. "Halloween was the next time he called me back. After Halloween, it was about every two weeks that I came to visit. This went on until Christmas break where we stopped. He started it up once again three weeks after we came back and it's been going on since then."

Albus said nothing for some time as he let it sink in. It all seemed farfetched to say the least, but Albus supposed he had to believe it even if certain things didn't seem to add up in his head. James just let him process it and sat there, saying nothing and not moving. Eventually, Albus looked at his brother and said, "Are you serious about that happening?"

James nodded and said, "Why would I lie? That story's not exactly a good one."

"So what happened after I was thrown out?" asked Albus.

"Do you really want to know?"

Albus hesitated for a second and then said, "Yes, I do."

James thought about how to answer his younger brother. Albus was way too young to hear even what he had already been told. In fact, James was too young for what was happening to him, but Albus shouldn't even be thinking that something like that could even happen. "Well, Brett was pretty angry and he almost punched me, but I calmed him down and it went as it usually did."

"What normally happens?"

James shook his head. "You don't want to know."

"Yes, I do," huffed Albus. "Like I said, I'm worried about you."

James shook his head. "It's not something I'm ready to talk about, Albus. Maybe someday and when that day comes, I'll tell you, but not today, okay?"

Albus looked at his brother oddly. Then, he nodded in understanding. "Well, I'm sorry. Is there anything you can do to get yourself out of this?"

"I don't think so, Al," sighed James. "I've just been going along with it until he gets bored with the arrangement."

Albus shook his head. "You should try to do something about it. Maybe I can help?"

James then turned angry. How could his brother suggest such a thing? Brett was dangerous! "No, Albus! Stay out of it! I told you what you wanted to know; there's nothing you can do to fix this so just stay out! Brett is much older than you and he's a monster! He will destroy you!" With that, James quickly stood up and walked away.

"Wait, James! Don't go!" called Albus.

James stopped in his tracks and looked back at Albus, glaring. "Our conversation is over. Good-bye."

As James retreated, Albus called, "Please talk to Louis, Jamie! He's worried about you!"

James stopped again and looked back at Albus in bewilderment. "Louis…" he gasped and then turned around, breaking into a run back to the castle.

Albus stayed alone under the tree, feeling as though the world around his was falling apart. His brother was trapped in a terrible predicament and there was nothing Albus could do about it. After some time, Albus pulled himself up, dragging his feet to the castle sluggishly. When he finally arrived in his dormitory, he crawled into his bed and tried desperately to forget about the events of the week. He was just about to drift off when the door slammed open, causing Albus to jerk into an upright position.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Did you wake you?" asked the new occupant in the room. Albus rubbed his eyes, hoping this was all a sick joke, but Scorpius Malfoy was very much standing in front of him.

"It's fine. I wasn't asleep yet, anyway. What are you doing here?" asked Albus.

"I thought I'd study in here. It's much calmer. I'm not bothering you, am I?" said Scorpius.

Albus shook his head and lay back down. "No, go right ahead." With that, he turned away from Scorpius. He wasn't going to force Scorpius to bother with him if he didn't want to.

After dumping all of his books out onto his bed, Scorpius looked at the flopping form of Albus. He sighed and figured small talk wouldn't hurt. "So, how have you been?"

Albus rolled onto his back and stared up at the ceiling. "I don't know. Same old, you know?" he answered, shrugging. "_Yeah, right. My same old had Scorpius in my life,_" Albus added in his head.

"That's good to hear," said Scorpius with a smile. "I did feel a little bad about what happened, but I hope we can be civil."

"Right. Sure," mumbled Albus. "My best friend can easily turn into a stranger at the drop of a hat, no problem."

"Albus, you know what I mean," sighed Scorpius. "We're still roommates and classmates. We can't always fight and it's wrong for us to hate each other."

Albus quickly jumped off of his bed and grabbed Scorpius by the shoulders, glaring straight into his eyes. "No, Scorpius, I don't know what you mean! I understand not wanting to help me, it would have been too much to ask anyway, but why did you have to tell me we couldn't be friends?" screamed Albus. "My week has been absolute hell, no thanks to you!"

"Albus, I-" started Scorpius, but he was cut of by Albus wrapping his arms around the blonde and proceeding to sob uncontrollably into Scorpius' shoulder. Scorpius didn't know what to do, but he knew he couldn't push Albus off of him no matter what. He knew he should throw Albus off of himself and tell the boy he wanted nothing to do with him. However, no matter how much he told himself he should do that, he couldn't, not with Albus crying so hard. Instead, Scorpius found himself huging Albus back and rubbing circles into the brunet;s back like Scorpius' father did whenever he had a nightmare. "Shhhh it's okay, Al. It's okay. Don't cry."

"Please stay by my side, Scor. I'm hopelessly lost without you, my best friend," sobbed Albus.

Scorpius found himself whispering,"I won't. I'll stay with you, Al, so long as you want me by your side. If that means forever, I'm perfectly okay with that." In that instant, Scorpius knew that would be true, Malfoy DNA be damned.

Albus smiled against his shoulder and they knew they would both be okay.

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><p>In another part of the castle, James found himself walking to the Room of Requirement, but unlike usual, he walked fast, with a purpose, not dreading what faced him. He entered the room and called out, "Hello? I'm here."<p>

Out of the corner, a figure walked out, but unlike Brett's dark head, this person had bright blonde hair. "Jamie, you came!" cried Louis. "When I heard you wanted to meet me, I couldn't believe it!"

"Louis, I'm sorry," mumbled James quietly, but the blonde was still able to hear it.

"Jamie, what are you talking about? What are you sorry for?" asked Louis.

James didn't answer, but pulled Louis into a hug. "Everything, Louis. I'm so sorry. I hope you can forgive me."

Louis smiled and said, "I don't really know what you're talking about, but I'll forgive you no matter what, Jamie. You'll always be my favorite cousin."

**To Be Continued…**

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><p><em>AN: Ugh this chapter. At first I really liked it, but now I'm not so sure. I can't place my finger on it, but something about this chapter feels wrong to me. I would have liked a little more time on it, but I've already taken such a long break and, since Hurricane Irene is coming straight for the town I live in, I won't be sure when I can next work on this story. I don't want you all to wait even more so here you go. You're welcome to rip this chapter apart in the reviews. I am so sorry with all of this sporadic updating crap just as I start this story, but I guess that's life. _

_See you next Friday if everything works out. I'll try my best to post a chapter, but it is going to be my second day back to school. It'll work out somehow, promise. I'd love to know what you think of this chapter so please drop in a review. _


	10. A Boy Finds Out

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. Jude, Raven, and Janet belong to pnx626 of deviantart.**_

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Chapter Nine: A Boy Finds Out**

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><p>March quickly sped into April, which meant that the Easter Holidays were just around the corner. Albus had been excited to go home to his family for two weeks, but found his workload to be rapidly increasing. All of his teachers were assigning much more than usual in preparation for the finals and Albus feared that traveling home wouldn't be an option. When confronting Scorpius on the matter, the blonde said, "Of course I'm staying, Al. We have finals in about two months! I'll be seeing my family after the term ends, anyway." The same reaction was received from Rose. On the other hand, the Zabini twins said, "Our parents will kill us if we don't come home," and Jude said, "With everyone here mostly studying? No way!" Albus knew, that without a doubt, James would be staying, and after asking Louis, he figured that most of his family would be staying as well. With resignation, Albus decided that Scorpius was right and that he would probably have to stay as well.<p>

Just as he feared, more homework than Albus had ever expected was dumped on him the day before Easter break. Completely worn out, he stumbled back to the common room at the end of the day, looking forward to a nice nap. A day of hearing, "Here's your homework for the break; I expect you to work hard studying for your finals in the two weeks you have off from class," had completely worn him out. Next to him, Scorpius stumbled along, looking less tired and more determined to start work as soon as possible.

"Al! Scorpius! I was just looking for you two!" called Rose, and the two boys turned their heads to look at the nearing Ravenclaw girl.

"Hi, Rosie," grinned Albus. "You were looking for us?"

Rose nodded and said, "A few of the other Ravenclaws and I want to get together to study for finals over the break some time. Please say you'll come, too!"

"I'd love to, Rose. The more the merrier, right?" answered Scorpius with a slight smile.

"I'll be there, too! I need all the help I can get; you know I'm bollocks at Charms and History of Magic!" said Albus.

"Yay! Thank you! I'm so happy you're coming!" gasped Rose.

"When is it going to be, anyway?" asked Scorpius.

Rose blushed and said, "We don't know yet, but it'll be some time next week. I'll tell you both when us Ravenclaws figure it out."

"Is it going to be in the library?" asked Albus.

Rose shook her head. "Probably not. The weather is so nice; it would be a crime to study inside!"

"Thanks for the invitation, Rose. We'll be there. Unfortunately, Al looks like he's going to fall on his face in exhaustion. It's best if we both head off. See you later, Rose," said Scorpius.

Rose nodded in understanding. "Okay. I'll see you later."

"Bye, Rosie," called Albus and followed Scorpius away from his cousin. When he was sure Rose was out of earshot, he said, "See, Scor? She doesn't hate you."

"I guess you're right. I still don't understand her previous behavior, though," sighed Scorpius.

"She was probably just warming up to you. I mean, you are a Slytherin who isn't her wonderful and amazing cousin," pointed out Albus.

"'Wonderful and amazing cousin'? You can't be talking about yourself, can you?" laughed Scorpius.

Albus grew red. "Of course! I'm the best Potter-Weasley in Slytherin,"

Scorpius laughed and said, "You don't have much competition, you know."

"Are you questioning my greatness, Scor?" question Albus, skeptically.

Scorpius looked at his friend in mock shock. "Why, I'd never! Not the great Albus Severus Potter, who is the son of the great Harry Potter and is a large prat."

Albus smiled in response and sarcastically said, "Well, one of us thinks you're funny."

Climbing in the common room, Albus made a beeline to that nearest couch, crashing onto it and nuzzling his face into the cushions. "So fluffy and warm," mumbled Albus. Scorpius moved to sit in the armchair next to the couch, a smile for his friend's mannerisms on his face. Albus picked his head up and looked at Scorpius. "I pray you're not planning to do homework right now. I'm way too tired."

Scorpius chuckled and said, "No, not today. I like to relax, too, just so you know."

"But tomorrow you'll be right back to the books, right?" grumbled Albus.

Scorpius grinned. "You know me so well."

A few days later, Scorpius and Albus were making their way to the courtyard. Scorpius had picked up a few of his homework assignments that he wanted to discuss with the Ravenclaws. Albus, on the other hand, grabbed everything in his reach, figuring that studying with the Ravenclaws was a great time to possibly relieve some of his workload. Walking into the courtyard, the two boys saw Rose, Janet, and a Ravenclaw boy huddled together. Seeing them approach, Rose raised her arm and waved them other. "Al! Scorpius! Over here!" The Ravenclaws made room for the Slytherins and the group huddled together, getting ready for a productive study session.

"Al, Scorpius, this is Janet and Cedric. Janet, Cedric, this is my cousin, Al, and his friend, Scorpius," introduced Rose. Greetings were exchanged between the four of them.

"So, what are we working on?" asked Albus.

"Potions," answered Cedric, chewing on his quill. "We're all having a bit of trouble with the assignment." Albus nodded and he and Scorpius pulled out _Magical Drafts and Potions_ as well as some parchment from their bags. Professor Slughorn had assigned his students a long essay on Forgertfulness Potions. After a few minutes of silent scribbling, Cedric picked his head up and said, "This textbook doesn't have enough information. I'm going to head to the library."

"Oh, I'll go. I was going to go later for a book, anyway. Just give me a title," offered Scorpius.

"Anything on potions that might help with this essay is fine," answered Cedric.

Scorpius nodded and stood up, reaching for his stuff and cramming it into his bag. Albus looked up at him and said, "I'll come with you, too."

"Why?" asked Scorpius looking oddly at his friend. "Weren't you having trouble with the assignment?"

"I can't copy off of you if you're not here," joked Albus.

Scorpius shoved Albus playfully. "Fine. You can come, but you're not copying off me."

Scorpius and Albus walked back to the castle and made their way over to the library. On their way, they had to dodge Peeves' water balloons. Scorpius wasn't fast enough and one ended up hitting him on the back of his neck. Dripping wet, Scorpius made it to the library with Albus trailing behind him and the two boys quickly ducked behind a shelf. Albus made sure no one was around and, when he was sure the coast was clear, peeled off his sweater and passed it to Scorpius.

"What are you doing?" demanded Scorpius.

"Put that on or you're going to freeze," ordered Albus. "I'll be fine in just this shirt."

"If you're sure," said Scorpius, taking the garment. Albus turned away and started looking for some books as Scorpius pulled off his wet clothes. He donned the sweater and shoved the soaked shirt and sweater into his bag. Then, he walked over to Albus to help him look. After some time, the two boys were able to create a decent pile of potions books and carried them over to a table. The two of them flipped through the books, attempting to find something that they could bring back to the Ravenclaws.

Half way through the books, Albus picked his head up to look at Scorpius. "Have you ever been in the Restricted Section?" he whispered.

"Of course not. It's called the Restricted Section, after all," replied Scorpius He closed the book he was looking at and said, "This one's good."

"Well, why don't we look inside? Maybe they have some really good books in there," offered Albus, pulling out his invisibility cloak.

"When have you ever cared about good informational books that weren't about Quidditch?" challenged Scorpius.

"Okay, never, but it's the _Restricted_ _Section_," pointed out Albus. "Don't you want to see what's in there?"

Scorpius rolled his yes and said, "Okay, fine. Lets go, but only for the Potions grade."

Grinning, Albus pulled on the cloak and Scorpius slipped under. They inched towards the Restricted Section and slowly pulled open the door. They arrived at the first shelf of books and noticed that many of them didn't have the title on the cover. Shrugging, Albus randomly reached for a random book and pulled it under the cloak. Scorpius leaned over Albus' shoulder and a shiver ran down the brunet's back as the blonde's wet hair tickled his neck.

"Can you back up a bit? Your hair's still wet," demanded Albus. Scorpius blushed and apologized, backing up about a foot. Their attention returned to the book in Albus' hand, the title being _Fifteenth-Century Fiends_. The first years flipped through it, in awe of the amazing moving pictures. They even stopped and read some of the pages. After about five minutes of being completely engrossed with the book, Albus forced himself to pull away and regrettably put it back on the shelf. "Lets keep moving. I want to look at more books."

"Al, excited about books? This is a new development," mocked Scorpius.

"These aren't just books, Scor! These are _restricted_ books," retorted Albus, completely serious. "Come on! Lets keep going!"

The two of them walked farther into the section and a pink binding caught Albus' eye. Reaching up, Albus pulled it under the cloak and flipped it open excitedly without checking the cover. Instantly, he regretted it. On the top of the right page, the headline read, "Gay Doesn't Just Mean Happy." On the left was a moving picture of two shirtless, good-looking men locked in an embrace, leaning forward into a kiss. Instantly, Albus' face turned bright red and Scorpius became tense behind him, his breath suddenly feeling very hot on Albus' neck.

"Al, wha-" began Scorpius, but was cut short with Albus slamming the book close, its title, _Wizard & Witch Sexuality_, clearly shown on the cover. Albus fumbled with the book and shakily was able to shove it back on the shelf. Both boys suddenly found it hard to look at each other and felt as though the other one was too close.

"Lets get out of here," suggested Albus. Scorpius couldn't have agreed more if he tried and they shuffled out as fast as they could. When they finally escaped the Restricted Section, much slower than either of them liked, Albus ripped off the cloak and moved to stand away from Scorpius.

"Albus, what was that?" asked Scorpius, his face still slightly red.

"I don't want to talk about it," snapped Albus, his face much redder than his friend's.

"But-"

"I don't want to talk about it!" screamed Albus and heads whipped around to stare at them; the librarian yelled at them to be quiet. Scorpius, embarrassed of his friend, stuck his head into one of the books.

"We should probably take these to the group outside," suggested Scorpius, desperate to change the topic if it meant Albus could stay quiet.

"You can go ahead. I'm suddenly not in the mood for group studying. I'm going to head back to our common room. You have fun with everyone else," said Albus.

"Are you sure?" Didn't you say you needed help?" asked Scorpius.

"I'm sure. See you later, I guess," said Albus. He picked up his bag and quickly walked out of the library, leaving Scorpius confused.

When Scorpius found Albus later, the brunet was curled up in an armchair in the common room. A few books were splayed open on the floor, but it was clear that Albus had done little with them. "Are you okay? You've been acting weird since the libaray," asked Scorpius.

Albus started and stared at Scorpius with wide eyes. "Scor! When did you get here?"

"I just walked in," deadpanned Scorpius.

"Oh right," chuckled Albus, embarrassed.

"You still haven't answered my question."

"I'm just tired, Scor. That's all," answered Albus, sinking into the armchair.

"I just wanted to know what all that was back at the library. The book was pretty weird; we shouldn't have gone in there," admitted Scorpius.

"You're acting like my sister! It's, frankly, pissing me off!" screamed Albus.

"Do you suddenly hate me, Al? Is this what this is about?" whispered Scorpius, hurt written all over his face.

"No! No, Scor! I don't hate you! I could never hate you!" gasped Albus. Then, his head fell into his hands. "I'm just so confused."

"Confused? About what?" asked Scorpius, moving to stand over Albus.

"That book we saw in the Restricted Section. It just… it confused me," mumbled Albus.

Scorpius looked at Albus strangely. Then, he kneeled down next to his friend and whispered in his ear, "Al, are you saying you might be gay?"

Albus grew bright red and turned to stare at his friend in shock. "No. No way! Of course I'm not, Scor! Don't joke about that!"

Scorpius breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank Merlin! You had me worried there!" he grinned. Then, he lost his gleeful expression and said, "but what's the matter then?"

Albus stared seriously at his friend and said, "Gay people."

"Gay people?" asked Scoripius, confused.

Albus nodded and confirmed, "Gay people."

"What about them?" questioned Scorpius completely baffled.

"I don't understand them, not really. I mean, I think Jamie is being tortured by a gay man every week in the Room of Requirement, but my dad always told me about his godfather and Teddy's dad and how happy and in love those two were," explained Albus. "Are gay people bad or not?"

Scorpius pondered what Albus said. "I don't know, Al. I never really thought about it. I thought they always just existed and never gave them much thought. Kind of like toast," he admitted. "Wait, your brother is being tortured by a gay man! How do you know?"

"He told me," said Albus, serious. In his head, he added, "_Well, not really…_"

Scorpius gasped, "This is horrible! What do we do?"

"I don't know, Scor, but I need to figure things out! I need to understand gay people so I can save my brother!" insisted Albus. "Kind of like a Prince saving his Princess except not really because James is my brother and not a girl!"

Scorpius grasped Albus' hand and stared deeply into his friend's eyes. "I'll help you, Al! We'll understand gay people together and then we'll save your brother!"

Albus grasped Scorpius' hand in both of his and said, "Together, my friend! I'll gladly read through every book in the library if it means saving my brother!"

"Yes!" cried Scorpius. "We will travel to the library! But first, lets find some gay people!"

**To Be Continued…**

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><p><em>AN: Here we are at a completely ridiculous development in the story. And yes, I made Sirius/Remus a thing. I couldn't not write in my OTP. _

_I worried needlessly; my first day of school has been postponed for Tuesday. I'll be seeing you all next Friday, hopefully. Please review; I want to know what you all think. _


	11. A Boy Leaves

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. Janet, Raven, and Jude belong to pnx626 of Deviantart.**_

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Chapter Ten: A Boy Leaves**

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><p>As naïve eleven-year-olds, Albus and Scorpius were completely serious in wanting to understand gay people, not understanding that their methods of doing so were completely silly. Their hearts were in the right place, but Hogwarts soon grew sick of their antics. Albus and Scorpius, when the blonde wasn't insisting that they study for their finals, made it their mission to discover as much as they could. They ran through the whole library looking for materials, but found little outside of the Restricted Section, a place where they were both a little hesitant about venturing into. What they did instead was hunt down the very few openly gay Hogwarts couples and question them to death. Most of the time, they were shoved away by annoyed students.<p>

Before both boys were aware of it, finals week had arrived. Scorpius was seen with his nose Spellotaped to his textbooks. Albus, on the other hand, was always on the tips of his toes, bouncing around and mumbling, "I'm gonna fail. I'm gonna fail."

Scorpius found Albus pacing back and forth through the common room the day before their first exam, his nerves worse than ever. Scorpius pulled the brunet over to the couch and shoved his notes into Albus' surprised arms. "Take them. You clearly need them more than I do right now!"

Albus stared at Scorpius in complete shock. Then, he threw his arms around his friend's neck and screamed, "Thank you thank you thank you!" Albus then jumped up and hurried into a corner of the room, intending to block everyone and everything out and cram for the exam.

The next morning, the first years woke up bright and yearly for their Transfiguration exam. The young students filed into the Great Hall, all very worried over their exam. Rose was seen walking in with a dazed expression, mumbling things under her breath.

Straight after breakfast, the first years headed straight to the exam room. Scorpius read over the exam and started writing after a few minutes. Albus sat down, ripping his hair out, but calmed down after he realized he understood what was in front of him. Right away, Rose started to write like crazy. Jude quickly sped through the exam and then just sat there balancing the quill on his nose. Duncan stared at the exam like it was in a foreign language.

The exam ended and Albus walked out, a relieved expression on his face. Scorpius quickly caught up to him and said, "Well?"

"I think I nailed it, Scor! There were a few questions at the end that I wasn't sure about, but otherwise I feel pretty good!" exclaimed Albus. "It's all thanks to your notes!"

"What, a few pages? Don't be silly, Al! It was all you!" laughed Scorpius.

"How did you do?" asked Albus, switching the topic to the blonde.

Scorpius looked away from his friend in embarrassment. "I thought it would be a breeze and it was."

"You're such an arsehole," grumbled Albus, shoving Scorpius.

Scorpius was about to shove Albus back when a voice behind them called the blonde's name. The two boys turned around to see Rose. "How did you think you did?" asked the girl.

"So very simple," answered Scorpius with a whistle. "You?"

"I feel like I definitely over studied," giggled Rose.

"Well, good luck on the rest of your exams," said Scorpius, turning away from the Weasley girl.

"You, too," answered Rose, walking away.

"Bye, Rosie!" called Albus, but the girl had already rounded the corner. When he was sure his cousin was gone, Albus turned to Scorpius and said, "You and Rosie are in a whole other world. I can't compete."

"What are you talking about?" questioned Scorpius, looking oddly at his friend.

"You're both so smart and good grades come easy to you both. I have to work so hard to get half the grades you get," grumbled Albus.

"I can't say anything for your cousin, but I work hard, too," defended Scorpius.

"Yeah, but you're still a genius," sighed Albus.

"I'm no genius, Al," responded Scorpius. "I just have more at stake."

The rest of exam week occurred much the same way with Albus over fretting and then walking out of the exam, completely sure of himself. The only exception was Astronomy, which he was terrible at and felt he had no hope in anyway, and History of Magic. Albus had stressed himself out so much over that test that he ended up blanking. He was sure that he had messed up on more questions on the History of Magic exam than on the Astronomy one and as a result, locked himself in the bathroom to cry his eyes out. For about three hours, all that was heard was Albus proclaiming that he had failed his family that he was a disgrace. All of the Slytherins grew sick of the crying and Scorpius was eventually able to break in. If anything, it resulted in another hour of Albus crying into Scorpius' shirt and Scorpius telling Albus over and over again that it would be okay.

Once their exams were over, Hogwarts entered into a week of no exams before the students were shipped back to their families for the summer. The first year Slytherins were already making plans to see each other, having gotten so close that the idea of not seeing each other over the summer seemed ridiculous.

"Jude, you're definitely coming over the first week of vacation, right?" asked Nate.

"Of course! I can't stay cooped up at my house forever, you know," grinned Jude. "If I did, I'd just fester and none of you would be able to recognize me when we come back next year."

"Well, you're all coming over in a few weeks, right? Grandmum loves holding summer get-togethers and friends are always invited," asked Albus.

"Of course!" grinned Raven. "If what I've heard about your grandmum is true, then I'd be a fool to miss all that food!"

"I wouldn't miss it for the world!" agreed Nate.

"Like I said, anything to not spend all summer cooped up at my house," was Jude's response.

"Yes! Yes! I'll definitely be there!" exclaimed Duncan.

"I don't know, Al," said Scorpius, feebly. Albus spun his head around to stare at his best friend, his eyes wide in shock. Hearing this did not make him happy.

"What do you mean?" asked the green-eyed boy.

"Al, there's no way my Da will let me. Asking him will probably result in physical injury," explained Scorpius.

Albus mood instantly soured. "You'll definitely write, yeah? It'll be a lonely two months otherwise."

Scorpius eyed widened at his best friend suggesting such a thing. "Of course I will! Even if you stop writing, I'll still keep going! Even if you tell me to stop!"

Luckily, the last week of school was filled with nothing but good weather and the boys spent it outside. Sometimes, Rose and her Ravenclaw friends would join in, but mostly it was just the Slytherin boys when Albus wasn't being dragged away by Haley. A mudwrestling match had even broken out between Albus and Jude, the boys shedding their shirts and diving head first into the muck. The match ended when Scorpius was pulled in with the Zabini twins and Duncan following soon after. When Hagrid caught them, the boys quickly sped up to the castle, screaming in glee.

All too soon, the students found themselves packing their bags and boarding the Hogwarts express. Albus and Scorpius found themselves crammed into a compartment with Rose, Duncan, Cedric, and Janet; the floor was quickly overloaded with snacks from the Trolley. Janet and Cedric were busy playing Exploding Snap and Scorpius was pressed against the window. He stared out of it with Albus sitting right next to him, looking over his shoulder.

"Are you sure you can't visit over the summer? I'd feel guilty trying to understand gay people without you," mumbled Albus with a pout, trying to keep quiet so that everyone else in the compartment couldn't hear.

"Sorry, Al. There's just no way. Especially since my parents will probably drag me to the houses of various relatives. You'll write to me about it, won't you?" apologized Scorpius.

"Definitely. You try to find out about gay people, too, and write to me about it!" insisted Albus. Scorpius nodded with a smile.

At that moment, the door to the compartment was ripped open and Haley stood there, covered head-to-tow in cat hair. "Have you seen a white cat?"

"No. Why?" asked Cedric skeptically.

"It's Trillians's. I got into a fight with it and it ended up running off," answered Haley. At that moment, a white streak passed between Haley's legs and her head spun to stare in the direction it disappeared in.

"I don't suppose that would be it?" offered Albus.

"Probably, yeah. See you later," said Haley, slamming the door shut and speeding after the cat.

"Who was that?" asked Rose.

"Nobody. Just some older Slytherin girl," answered Albus. "She's a little weird."

"Albus is just a bit angry because he spent months eyeing her and then she rejected him. You really ought to stop giving everyone the impression that you and Scorpius are butt buddies or you'll never get a girl," chuckled Duncan.

"Shut up, Duncan. I was not eyeing her. We're just friends," hissed Albus. "Besides, she's older so stop taking the piss."

"Al is in love! Al is in love!" taunted Duncan.

"Shut up, you arse!" cried Albus, his face beet red. Everyone else just laughed. Albus rolled his eyes and slumped down in the seat. Eventually, everyone lost interest in making fun of Albus. Janet and Cedric returned to their game, Rose joining in. Duncan had fallen asleep, his tongue hanging out of his mouth lazily. Albus noticed this and pulled out his ink well. He dipped his finger in the ink and drew a sloppy mustache on Duncan's upper lip, snickering as he did so. The others in the compartment noticed what he was doing and started to laugh along with him. Duncan somehow managed to sleep through the whole thing and when he did wake up, everyone pretended as if nothing had happened.

"What's going on?" asked Duncan.

"Nothing. Just go back to sleep," insisted Rose through giggles. Duncan pestered her for information, but when she wouldn't tell him anything, he just rolled over and was out cold fairly quickly.

The train arrived at King's Cross and one-by-one, the students began to disembark. Scorpius pulled Duncan out of hibernation just as everyone else was leaving the compartment. Albus whined about wanting to leave him on the train, but Scorpius claimed that would be far too cruel even for the Slytherin house.

As Albus stepped off the train, he saw his parents waving to him. The brunet sprinted over and his father pulled him into a crushing hug. It felt wonderful to see his parents again after a whole year without them. To keep up appearances, Albus cried out, "Let go, Dad! I can't breath!"

"You know he wouldn't be so happy to see you if you came home at least once doing the school year," sighed Albus' mum.

"Sorry, Mum, but I'll come for Christmas this year. Promise," responded Albus as his father went to retrieve his trunk from the train.

Around them, Albus noticed many children like him being reunited with their families. Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione stood next to Ginny Potter, greeting a smiling Rose. Albus heard Spencer's voice calling, "Come on, Danny! You have to meet my family!" Brett was seen saying farewell to a relieved James as they emerged from the depths of the train.

Suddenly, Albus remembered something. His eyes scanned the crowd frantically and finally were able to settle. Dropping everything he was carrying, the brunet ran away from his family. His body contacted flesh and his arms wrapped around Scorpius, pulling the blonde into a death hug. Scorpius gave a yelp, but calmed down when he realized who it was.

"Good bye, Scor! You're gonna miss me, right?" mumbled Albus into his friend's back.

Scorpius blushed bright red as the eyes of his mother, father, and grandparents stared the two of them down. "Um, of course, Al. It's not like we'll never see each other again."

"I won't see you _all_ summer, though. It's gonna be pretty lonely without you, Scor!" complained Albus. He let go of his friend and stared at him with puppy dog eyes.

Scorpius smiled, "I'll send you a letter every day if you send me one, too! It'll be like we still see each other every day!"

"Really?" gasped Albus.

There was an impatient cough and Scorpius turned around, Albus looking over his shoulder. The owner of the cough was none other then Lucius Malfoy, his gray hair beginning to recede significantly. Scorpius turned red and bowed at his grandfather as best he could with Albus clutching him. "Sorry. I have to go, Al. See you in September." He gave Albus a quick one-armed hug and scampered after his family through the wall, leaving behind a confused Albus Potter.

Albus watched his friend go, wondering if he had done anything wrong. He turned around to see his family standing there and beaming at him, his mother holding his sister, Lily's hand. With an awkward smile, Albus picked up his belongings and followed his family out of the building, his mind still focused on Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy.

**To Be Continued…**

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><p><em>AN: Ah I'm late with the update, aren't I? Sorry about that! It's been a little hectic with back-to-school stuff so updates might be a little off for some time, but I promise I have not forgotten about this! If things go as I plan them, I will see this story till the end!_

_I'll try my best with updating on time with the next chapter! I have decided, however, to move the update day to Saturday. I came home last Friday so incredibly tired that the idea of staring at a computer screen seemed painful and I do not want that experience to repeat. I felt so bad with not updating on time, but it couldn't be helped. Maybe making it Saturday will make things better._

_Please review! I need to know your opinions on this!_


	12. A Boy Disgraced

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. Jude and Raven belong to pnx626 of deviantart.**_

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Chapter Eleven: A Boy Disgraced**

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><p>On the first day of summer, Scorpius found himself waking up very late in the morning. In shock, he quickly tried to scrambled out of bed, but instead ended up tripping and slamming face first into the floor when his leg caught on the blanket. His scream resonated throughout the mansion. Draco Malfoy, upon hearing the scream, called, "Scorpius? Is that you? Are you alright, son?" When no response was given, Scorpius' father ran up the stairs with his wife at his heels. They broke through the door to their son's bedroom to find Scorpius sprawled out face first on the floor, his blanket hanging off the bed. Astoria was at his side instantly, helping her son up. Scorpius had blood streaming from his nose and his hands flew to his face in a desperate attempt to slow the stream.<p>

"'hurts, Mum," groaned Scorpius. Astoria pulled out her wand and mumbled a few spells. Scorpius gave a yelp as his nose was snapped back in place, the blood disappearing.

"Could you be a little more careful? First day back home and Mummy already has to mend you," sighed Astoria, giving Scropius a hug. "Come downstairs. The house elves will make you some breakfast."

"Okay," mumbled Scorpius while feeling his nose to make sure it was okay. When he was satisfied with what his mother had done, he followed his parents to the dining room. After about a minute, Scorpius was greeted by a house elf holding a plate of food and he graciously took it. As he was eating, he asked his parents, "Why didn't you wake me up this morning?"

"Your mother and I thought we'd let you sleep. We figured you would need it after the long school year," answered Draco.

Scorpius cast his eyes down to his plate. "Thank you, sir."

Draco was taken aback and stared at his son oddly. He felt a tap on his shoulder from his wife and turned his head to see Lucius Malfoy standing in the doorway. It was no secret that the eldest Malfoy despised how Draco raised his son.

"Good morning, Father," greeted Draco. Lucius gave him a nod in response and plopped himself down in the closest chair. Instantly, a house elf brought him a plate of food and disappeared.

"Draco, have you and Astoria thought about Durmstrang?" asked Lucius.

"What do you mean?" questioned Draco.

"I just feel that it would be a much more positive environment than Hogwarts for Scorpius," answered Lucius.

"Nonsense," said Astoria. "Everyone in my family went to Hogwarts and you sent Draco there. Hogwarts is also much closer. It has always been the obvious choice."

"Then tell me why Scorpius has made such terrible company in just one short year," demanded Lucius, glaring at his family from across the table.

"Terrible company? How can you possibly find terrible company in Slytherin?" asked Scorpius, knowing how much his grandfather adored the house.

"Then what do you have to say about that Potter boy? Explain yourself!" spat Lucius.

"He's a Slytherin! I swear!" exclaimed Scorpius.

"A Slytherin? They're growing soft with who they are accepting into that house! A Potter is always a filthy Potter!" screamed Lucius. "How dare you make such disgusting company? How dare you let that filth touch you?" The elder man dragged out his wand and pointed it straight at Scorpius. "_Crucio_!"

Scorpius screamed in agony, dropping the spoon he was holding and falling to the ground from his chair. Draco and Astoria instantly jumped up from their seats and ran to their son's side. Lucius pocketed his wand and Scorpius' screams were replaced by silent sobs.

"We're taking a trip to Norway," ordered Lucius and, with that, left the room.

A feeble voice was heard saying, "Mum, it hurts."

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><p><em>Hey Al,<em>

_How are you? Sorry it's been a few days since I last wrote; it's been a little crazy here and I didn't have time to respond to your many latters. My grandpa decided to suggest an impromptu trip to Norway and the rest of us think it's an amazing idea._

_I hope you aren't having too much fun without me. I wouldn't want to return to Hogwarts and dampen your good spirits. I've been all right here, but Hogwarts had made me spoiled with its company. Here all I have is Mum, Dad, Gran, and Grandpa. While I love them, they get rather tiring at times._

_Write back soon,_

_Scor_

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><p>When Albus got Scorpius' letter, he didn't know what to make of it. He found that something off, but he couldn't place his mind on what. He knew that Scorpius was lonely; Albus could read his friend well enough. There was something else in the letter, though. It was something Albus hadn't seen before in Scorpius.<p>

The brunet decided that all he could do was ignore the nagging feeling at the back of his mind for the time being. He turned away from the letter to look at Rose and Duncan who were sitting on one of the beds in the room. Duncan had arrived to the Burrow two days prior and their other three dorm mates were to come in the next week.

"Who's the letter from? No, let me guess: Scorpius?" asked Duncan.

"Scorpius?" squeaked Rose in shock.

"Don't be stupid. How is me writing to him strange? When was the last time you wrote to someone from Hogwarts?" demanded Albus.

"I wrote a letter to Jude," answered Duncan. "It was… three hours ago. Shut up!"

Albus smirked. "I think I've made my point."

"You've been writing to Scorpius? How come I didn't know about this?" asked Rose, her eyebrows scrunching up in confusion.

"I've been writing to all of my Hogwarts friends," admitted Albus. "Even to Haley that one time."

"That girl is crazy, you know," sighed Duncan.

"Believe me, I know."

"Al! Rosie! Come help your uncles degnome the garden! Duncan can help, too!" called Mrs. Potter up the stairs.

"Coming Mum!" called Albus. Duncan winced, knowing it wasn't truly optional for him. The three of them, after a minute of cringing, walked downstairs and out the back door. Uncle George, Uncle Bill, James, and Louis were already out there, kneeling in the bushes. Louis yowled when one bit his finger and he stumbled backward into James. The older Potter boy screamed and the two of them flopped in a heap onto the ground. James grappled for the gnome and ripped it from his cousin's fingers. When the foul creature was finally off, James tossed it over his shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, Jamie," apologized Louis, his face red in embarrassment.

"It's okay, Louis. Are you alright?" asked James. He grabbed Louis' arm and examined it closer. A trickle of blood dripped down the blonde's hand from where the gnome had bit him. "Lets get you inside. Someone will heal this for you."

Louis ripped his hand away from James, looking shocked. "Jamie, it's fine! It's just a minor cut! Please don't worry about me and lets get back to degnoming!"

Jamie was about to protest but a cough from Albus interrupted him. "Do you need any help?" asked the younger Potter boy.

"Al? Glad you came! Help would be great! We need as much as much help as we can get!" answered Uncle Bill. "Come on, Rosie, Duncan. You help, too!"

Al leaned in front of a bush and blindly stuck his arm in, trying his best to grasp for a small body. He felt one move about and reached for its ankle, pulling it out. The gnome shrieked in Albus' grasp as the boy swung it around. After a few seconds, the gnome was tossed. When Albus turned around to look for more, he came face-to-face with a pale Duncan.

"What's with your face?" questioned Albus.

"What was that?" demanded Duncan, ignoring Albus' question.

"What was what?" asked Albus, a confused expression on his face.

"That thing! That thing you were holding! What was that?" screamed the dark skinned boy.

"What, the gnome?" asked Albus oddly.

"That was a gnome? I don't was to touch something like that!" gasped Duncan.

"They won't hurt you! Don't be stupid!" cried the green eyed boy. He reached into a bush and grasped a gnome. Lugging the gnome out, he tossed it in Duncan's direction. Duncan screamed and ducked out of the way as the gnome crashed into the ground and angrily stood up, stomping into the bushes.

"Stop screwing around and get to work!" ordered James from across the garden.

"Don't tell me what to do, Jamie!" yelled Albus. He turned to Duncan and said, "Don't listen to him. He believes he can boss me around just because he's older."

"I heard that, Al! Work before I call Uncle Ron to beat you over the head!" threatened James.

Albus rolled his eyes and walked over to James. He stopped about two meters from his brother and stuck his arms into the bushes nearest to himself. One gnome after another was tossed over Albus' head as he pulled them out. When Albus was sure James had all but forgotten that he was there, the soon-to-be second year launched a gnome at his brother's head. James released a high-pitched scream and proceeded to wrestle with the gnome. When he finally managed to pull it off himself, he sent Albus the king of all death glares.

"I'm going to kill you!" screamed James, slugging the laughing Albus in the face.

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><p><em>Scor,<em>

_You're going to Norway? That's reason to rejoice! I'm stuck with more red heads than you can ever imagine in a cramp space and you're going to be in Norway! You must tell me all about it and bring plenty of pictures with you to Hogwarts._

_I wish you could be here! I mean, Jude arrived late last night, Duncan came days ago, and Nate and Raven should be here two days from now, but I know something is missing. Seeing them is nice, but they're not my partner in crime! _

_Jamie is pretty miffed at me for tossing a gnome at his face. He claims that I almost took out his eye, but I wouldn't have to do that if he wasn't such a sourpuss lately! Lils thinks Jude is absolutely brilliant and won't leave him alone. I feel pity for him because my sister is a pest, but better him than me. I'm absolutely sick of her!_

_Have fun in Norway and make sure to write soon. I want to know every detail!_

_Your friend,_

_Al_

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><p>Walking through Durmstrang made Scorpius' skin crawl. The castle was much smaller than Hogwarts and seemed to have an oceanic scent to everything. The building was much more dimly light than Hogwarts, although Scorpius couldn't tell if it was because of the time of day or if it always was like that. He chose not to think about it and continued to dig his fingers nails into his mother's arm.<p>

In the front, leading the way, was a very tall and skinny man. His heavy robes did nothing to hide the awkward build of his body and his hair was a bright white. He held a torch in his hand and had introduced himself as the Headmaster; Scorpius was not able to remember his name. Almost a few steps behind him were Scorpius' grandfather and grandmother. Keeping his distance, Draco followed behind them, making sure not to leave his wife and son far behind.

The Headmaster unlocked a door on the side of the hallway and ushered the Malfoys into the room. The room, which was an office from what Scorpius could tell, was barley light, the only light being from a few sporadic candles. The Headmaster sat down at the desk to stare up at the Malfoy family and Scorpius couldn't help but be reminded of a teacher glaring at a misbehaving student.

"I'm sorry to bother you, especially so late at night, but my family and I wish to enroll my grandson into your fine academy. I understand he's already completed one year at Hogwarts, but it was a less-than satisfactory experience. I really must insist that he return for his second year here," explained Lucius.

"What were his marks?" asked the Headmaster.

"I'm not sure. What were they, Astoria?" questioned Lucius, his expression cold as he stared and his daughter-in-law.

"Perfect marks. Best in his class," grunted Astoria while she was not able to meet Lucius Malfoy's eyes with her own.

"Second best," came a feeble voice.

Everyone turned to stare at the young boy who the conversation was about. "What did you say, boy? Speak up!" ordered Lucius.

"I was second best. Rose Weasley had better grade than me in everything but Astronomy and Potions," admitted Scorpius. It hadn't ever been something that had bothered Scorpius; he found Albus to be absolutely brilliant so it only made sense that it ran in the family in some way. However, admitting it then at that moment made Scorpius feel stupid.

"Oh, he's just being modest," insisted Lucius, "but you do see the problem, don't you? We can't have the child of a Mud-Blood and a Blood Traitor outscore our dear Scorpius, now can we?"

"Voicing that kind of thing isn't very wise these days, Lucius," sighed the Headmaster.

"But you do understand, don't you?"

"I fail to see what the problem with Hogwarts is if he's getting such good marks."

"He hates it there," exclaimed Narcissa. "He thinks it's a terrible school. The complaining was so dreadful when he came back that we had to do something about it!" Lucius looked at his wife oddly and then gave her a nod.

"He hated it?" asked the Headmaster. Then, he turned to Scorpius and said, "You hated it, Scorpius?"

Lucius gave Scorpius a hard glare and Astoria gave her son's hand a squeeze. Scorpius tried not to think of all of the wonderful moments that had occurred at Hogwarts and said, "Yes, sir. I hated it. Please allow me to start your school in September."

The Headmaster stared at the family for some time without saying a word. Then, he released a deep sigh and said, "I'm sorry. There's no reason for us to take him especially since he'll be a year behind all the other students."

"He'll study. You'll study, won't you, Scorpius?" insisted Lucius desperately. Scorpius couldn't do anything but nod.

No matter how much Lucius Malfoy pleaded, the Headmaster did not accept his demands. After about twenty minutes, the eldest Malfoy was forced to give up and followed his family out the door. The family quickly floo'd out of the castle and into their quarters at a nearby inn.

As soon as they were safely within the walls of the room, a sharp smack was delivered to the side of Scorpius' head. The impact forced the boy to stumble back and fall onto the ground. Silent tears began to prickle at the corners of his eyes.

"Stupid boy. You're a disgusting excuse for a Malfoy."

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><p>Two days later, Albus received a letter from Scorpius. He quickly ripped it open, expecting a long letter, but all it said was, "<em>I miss you, Al. You're my best friend. <em>–_Scorpius"_

**To Be Continued…**

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><p><em>AN: I DID NOT DIE I SWEAR and I'm so sorry that I've missed a few weeks of updates, but life has been pretty hectic. I won't make anymore promises on when the next update will be, but I'll try to make it soon. I have not given up on this, I promise! _

_Please give me a review. Preferably one that tells me what a terrible person I am and that I have to update more often._


	13. A Boy Reunited

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling.**_

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Chapter Twelve: A Boy Reunited**

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><p>After Scorpius' short message, he didn't write any more no matter how many letters Albus wrote to him At least, Albus didn't get any and he wondered who would intercept Albus' owls otherwise. Night after night, for weeks, Albus sat in front of his bedroom window and watched for owls that didn't come. It wasn't until James and Lily pulled him away from the window one afternoon that he stopped waiting.<p>

Despite the lack of letters, summer still passed rapidly for Albus. Lily's tenth birthday came and soon after was Albus' twelfth. Albus had expected something from his best friend – a letter or something, the very least – but there was nothing just as usual.

Even though Scorpius' letters stopped coming, Albus didn't stop sending his. In fact, the less Scorpius wrote, the more Albus did.

Pretty soon, it was the week before the school year was to start up and the Potter family took their annual trip to Diagon Alley. Their first stop, as always, was Weasley's Wizard Weezes. Like every visit, a smiling Uncle George greeted them. James, Albus, and Lily ran through the shop and shuffled through the many new items that had been introduced. Throughout the visit, Uncle George would slip snacks into the pockets of his nephews and niece.

After much protesting, Harry and Ginny pulled their children out of the shop. Their first order of business would be Flourish and Blotts for new books and it was about time that they started their shopping trip. When they entered the bookshop, they were greeted with a very musky smell and Albus was instantly reminded of the nights when he and Scorpius would stay up hours into to night reading old Quidditch books together. Shaking the memory out of his head, he pulled out his book list and proceeded to walk around the store to find everything. When Albus looked up from his book list, he found himself alone as his siblings had run inside ahead of him.

Albus found _A Standard Book of Spells, Grade Two_ and when he reached up for it, he ended up tripping and shuffling backwards, knocking into someone in the process. He quickly scrambled away and was about to apologize, but he noticed who it was. "Scor!" gasped Albus, completely in shock at seeing his friend after such a long time of not talking to him.

"Al!" screaming Scorpius delightfully. Albus took a second look at Scorpius, but his good mood quickly became sour. Scorpius had grown much slimmer and his face seemed a bit shrunken in. The blonde had always been a pale boy, but now he looked noticeably paler to Albus.

"Scor, what happened to you?" questioned Albus, concern written all over his features.

"What do you mean? Nothing's happened. I'm perfectly fine, Al," answered Scorpius with an awkward smile.

"What do I mean? You look terrible!" gasped Albus, "and why did you stop writing?"

"I didn't have a lot of time and I've very sorry. Your letters did make me really happy, though!" There was something very odd with Scorpius and, despite the fact that Albus did not know what it was, the brunet could tell that he was much more withdrawn than he used to be. An idea popped into Albus' head and he reached into his packet, pulling out some of the candy he was given and passing it to the other boy.

"Take these. They're really good," insisted Albus.

"I can't!" responded Scorpius, shocked at the gift.

"I have a lot more and can get them whenever I want. Take them already!" demanded Albus. Scorpius started over his friend being so upfront and quickly grabbed the candy, shoving deep into his pocket with a large grin.

"Thank you. There's something I wanted to give you, too. I know your birthday was awhile ago, but I wasn't able to find time to owl it to you," said Scorpius and stuck his hand into his bag, pulling out a wrapped box. He placed it in Albus' surprised hands. "Happy birthday, Al!"

"Thanks, Scor! You really didn't have to, though. Just a simple "happy birthday" would have been fine," responded Albus.

"I can always take it back if you don't want it."

Embarrassed, Albus shoved the package into his bag as Scorpius chuckled at his friend. "No, it's alright. I'll keep it. Come on, though! Lets go exploring!" yelled Albus in excitement.

"I can't, Al! My dad'll be back any minute!" cried Scorpius.

"My parents are here, too! Come on; it'll only be a few minutes! They'll never know we were gone," insisted Albus. Scorpius knew that he couldn't resist Albus' demands for long and let the brunet drag him out of the store by the hand.

The two boys walked through Diagon Alley hand-in-hand, passing different wizards and witches. Many of the shops didn't strike either of their fancy and so they kept walking. Along the way, they walked past Eeylops Owl Emporium and Scorpius accidentally tripped over an empty cage settled outside of the shop. The cage clattered to the ground with a loud crash.

"Are you okay?" asked Albus just as someone stuck their head out of the store to glare at them.

"What are you two doing? Buy something or get away from here!" growled the employee. Scorpius rapidly jumped up from the ground and dusted himself off, quickly following Albus away from the store. The two of them tried their best to resist the urge to break into a sprint.

When they were far enough away from the store, Scorpius checked himself for any injuries, but aside from the future bruises that would be a given from such a fall, none were found. "I'm fine, Al," he answered his friend. "Don't worry about me." To reassure the Potter boy, Scorpius snaked his fingers back through Albus' with a grin.

At the end of Diagon Alley they found a sign with "Knockturn Alley" printed on it. It was pointing down a long, dark side street. Despite the ominous aura it emitted, Scorpius and Albus peered down it in wonder.

"Have you ever been down here?" asked Albus.

Scorpius shook his head. "No, but my grandfather sometimes talks about it. What about you?"

"No, never heard of it," answered Albus. Then, with a mischievous grin that would give Peeves a run for his money, he said, "Lets go!"

A nagging feeling brewed in Scorpius' stomach, but he decided to ignore it and followed Albus. He had missed his best friend so much and now that he had him back, he would follow him to the ends of the Earth. If Albus wanted to drag him down a dark alley, he wouldn't hesitate to go after him. Scorpius knew that with Albus he was safe.

When Scorpius finally managed to snap out of his thoughts, he discovered that Albus was dragging him into a shop. The brunet was mumbling something along the lines of, "Look, shiny!" Scorpius took a better look at the establishment they were in and saw that the shop was littered was various odd objects and trinkets. They all seemed highly sinister and Scorpius was scared of touching anything.

"Al, I'm not sure about this," whispered Scorpius, voicing his fears.

Albus looked at his friend and squeezed his hand in comfort. "You'll be fine. I just want to look. We won't touch anything. I promise." Scorpius couldn't help but believe him.

As Albus and Scorpius walked around, they quickly came to the conclusion that the objects for sale kept getting creepier and creepier. "Scor, I think we should go now," Albus managed to squeak out. Scorpius nodded in agreement and the two began to turn around when Scorpius found himself slamming into something - a body to be precise. Scorpius' shirt collar was grabbed and the blonde was yanked up into the air so that he was looking straight into the eyes of his grandfather.

"What are you doing here? Where are your parents? Who is this brat with you?" spat Lucius with a glare.

"F-flourish and Blotts," stuttered Scorpius, but refused to say more.

Lucius dragged Scorpius to the door of the shop, calling "I'll be back soon!" to someone in the shop. Scorpius scrambled for something to grab and when he found nothing, he chose to grab onto the brunet who was chasing after them. By the time he managed to hook his arms around Albus, they were in the middle of Diagon Alley and everyone was staring at them.

Realizing they were causing a scene, Lucius dropped Scorpius and said, "Return to your parents now and loose the dirt." With that, he turned around and disappeared back down Knockturn Alley.

Albus led the shaking Scorpius over to the curb and they both sat down. Scorpius refused to meet Albus' eyes, pretending that there was something interesting in his lap. Albus broke the silence by asking, "Was that the reason you haven't been writing?"

Scorpius didn't respond at first. He look up from his lap and stared into Albus' eyes, tears staining his cheeks. It was the first time Albus had seen his friend cry and he was so shocked that he almost missed the weak, "I don't want to go home," that escaped Scorpius' lips.

Albus found himself reaching out his hand and swiping it across the blonde's cheek to wipe away Scorpius' tears. Scorpius wrapped his arms around Albus and the brunet hugged him back. Albus didn't understand what was going on, but he knew that Scorpius was hurting. With every sob that Scorpius produced, Albus felt like his heartstrings were tightening.

The two preteen boys sat there on the side of the street, holding each other. Plenty of wizards and witches asked the two of them if they were all right, but they were all ignored. About half an hour later, Draco and Harry found the two boys and it took both of them to pry their sons away from each other. Draco picked up his son in his arms and awkwardly asked, "Scorpius, what is wrong?"

"G-grandpa," chocked out Scorpius, tightening his hold on his father. Draco looked at Harry to see him still standing there, holding his son's hand. The two Potters looked at Scorpius in worry.

"Draco, I don't mean to pry, but what happened to your son?" demanded Harry. "I am Head Auror and I deserve to know. This isn't normal!"

"My father's the man you want. Don't bother us," deadpanned Draco. With that, he turned around and the two Malfoys disappeared into the crowd.

"Dad, what are you going to do?" asked Albus, staring up at his father.

"Go back to Flourish and Blotts, Al. Jamie and Lils are still there. I'm going to look for Lucius Malfoy," explained Mr. Potter. With that, he walked away from his son, leaving the twelve-year-old standing alone in the middle of the street.

Albus made his way back to the bookstore after he couldn't see father's retreating figure. When he arrived at the store, James stepped out to greet him. After his brother ushered Albus inside, the three Potter children sat together in the aisle between two bookshelves. The other two Potter kids took in Albus' appearance; his sweater was tear stained and he had his head in his hands as to show that he would refuse to look up.

"Al, talk to us," begged Lily, her eyebrows arched in concern. "What happened?"

"I don't really know myself, Lils," groaned Albus. "Something happened with Scorpius and his grandfather. Something bad."

Lily looked confused, but James nodded. "I saw you two walk out of the store. Dad was worried sick. Mum's still out looking for you as far as I know."

"Who found you?" asked Lily.

"Dad did," answered Albus, "Dad and Mr. Malfoy."

"Mr. Malfoy? Don't we hate them?" asked Lily in confusion. "Dad's always talking about what the Malfoys did in the war."

Albus finally picked his head up and stared at his siblings. "I don't know anything about his family, but Scorpius Malfoy is my best friend and something bad has happened to him."

**To Be Continued…**

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><p><em>AN: I am relatively on time this week! Huzzah!_

_Please review. I want to know what you think._


	14. A Boy Returns

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. Raven, Janet, and Jude belong to pnx626 of deviantart.**_

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Chapter ****Thirteen: ****A ****Boy ****Returns**

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><p>Scorpius was woken up early the morning of September 1st to the sound of strange yelling. The blonde, completely shocked at the commotion, quickly wrenched himself out of bed and ran downstairs to see what was going on. He quickly discovered that his family was gathered in the dining hall, but they weren't the only ones there. Two aurors stood in the room as well, their wands pointed at Lucius Malfoy. It took all of Scorpius' willpower not to gasp when he recognized the two aurors as Harry Potter and Ron Weasley. His parents stood to the side, his father not looking at the scene taking place in front of him and his mother clutching her husband's arm, trying her best to calm herself while comforting Draco. It wasn't going too well and just made the woman fall into deeper hysterics. His grandmother, Narcissa Malfoy, was on her knees, begging for them not to take Lucius away.<p>

Scorpius made his way across the room to his mother's side. Astoria wrapped her free arm around his shoulders and pulled her son close. "Mum, what's going on?" asked Scorpius, fear all over his face.

The one who answered Scorpius' question wasn't his mum, but Ron Weasley. "Lucius Malfoy is under arrest. We finally got this bastard!"

A heavy sob was heard from Nacrissa, as she wailed, "No! Please don't take him away! My husband is a good man! A good man I tell you!"

"Blood traitor!" growled Lucius at Mr. Weasley.

"Just come with us," ordered Mr. Potter, slowly watching Lucius Malfoy walk past him and Ron, his wand raised. As Lucius walked out of the room, he quickly followed in suit.

Ron Weasley was about to walk after them, but paused for a second to say," Don't worry, Malfoy, you're next. You may have Harry and everyone else convinced that you are innocent, but I know the truth. I will arrest you someday and force you to serve your appropriate sentence." After that, he quickly left, not walking to look at the Malfoys any more.

Scorpius pressed himself closer to his mother, not wanted to admit that the arrest of his grandfather made him happy. All was silent aside from the sobs of Narcissa.

Four hours later, Scorpius stood at King's Cross, clutching his belongings, and feeling slightly happier and much more relieved than he had all summer. His eyes habitually scanned the crowd, looking for the messy head of Albus Potter. After a few seconds of staring, he followed after his mother and helped her load his trunk into the train. His father had stayed behind at the manor, too distressed to think of seeing his son off.

After kissing his mother good-bye, Scorpius climbed onto the train and walked through, looking for a compartment. He found an empty one and settled into it by the window. After a few minutes, he felt a body sit down next to him and press into his side. Scorpius didn't look up at the newcomer; he didn't need to.

"I hope this is okay. I understand if you want to be alone," said Albus. Scorpius finally turned his head to look into his friend's green eyes.

"You sent your dad and uncle, didn't you?"

Albus dropped his gaze and answered, "I had to do something. I know you probably hate me for what I did to your family, but I couldn't just stand by."

Scorpius reached over and pulled Albus into a hug. The action caught the brunet by surprise as it wasn't the reaction he was expecting. "Thank you. Thank you so much," mumbled Scorpius into his friend's shoulder.

"You're not mad?" asked Albus, taken aback.

"No. Thank you, though your uncle will probably try even harder in his quest to find a reason to throw my dad into Azkaban," sighed Scorpius, letting Albus go.

"Wait, you're dad's done something bad, too?" asked Albus, his eyes wide in shock and concern.

Scorpius chuckled and said, "No. My father's a great man. Your uncle just refuses to forget their past."

"Tell me about things like this from now on. You know I can take care of it," insisted Albus. Then, he blushed at his error and corrected what he said with, "Well, my dad can."

Scorpius nodded. "I definitely will, thanks."

A knock on the door of the compartment dragged Albus and Scorpius out of their conversation. They looked at who had disrupted them and saw their dorm mates standing just outside, looking annoyed. Jude was banging as hard as he could on the door, screaming, "Come on, you love birds! Let us in!"

Albus laughed and stood up to pull open the door. The four other boys quickly piled in and sat down in the vacant seats. Within minutes, the compartment was filled with loud chatter.

"I played so much Quidditch over the break that I'll be sure to make the team!" bragged Jude, grinning.

"What rubbish are you going on about?" teased Nate.

"Yeah, what position?" laughed Raven along with his brother, completely unconvinced of Jude's talent for the game.

"I'm gonna be a Beater!" grinned Jude while puffing out his chest. "Are any of you lot trying out?"

"I might, but I don't know for what position yet," said Duncan timidly.

"I'm sure you'll figure it out. The six of us can practice whenever the pitch isn't in use and we'll help you," offered Albus.

"What about you, Al? Are you trying out?" asked Duncan.

"Oh no. I'm absolutely rubbish on a broom, but maybe I'll get better as we practice," admitted Albus, but he knew the chance of that was slim to none. He had always been terrible at best.

Jude gave Albus a weird look, refusing to believe Albus' words. "Isn't your father Harry Potter, youngest Seeker in a century, your mum Ginny Potter, ex-member of the Holyhead Harpies, and your older brother a brilliant Chaser for Gryffindor? How can you be rubbish at Quidditch?"

Albus blushed bright red and said, "I don't know. I just am. I'm also a Slytherin; that's not a Potter trait, either." Jude wanted to say something as a retort, but nothing came to him so he just sat there with a sour expression as a response.

"What about you, Scor? You going to try out?" asked Albus in an attempt to steer the conversation to a new topic, his face returning to its normal color.

Scorpius shook his head. "I didn't practice at all during the summer hols. If I tried out, it would just be embarrassing. There's always next year."

There was a knock on the door just then and the boys turned to stare at the familiar Hogwarts trolley. The boys looked at each other with large grins on their faces and the compartment was quickly filled with snacks. His mouth full of chocolate frog, Scorpius pulled out a wizard chess set and him and Albus became lost in the game. Mid-way through, Scorpius asked, "So did you find anything out about gay people?" making sure that everyone else was too preoccupied to listen to them.

Albus shook his head. "Not much. Nothing that we didn't know already. What about you?"

"My research wasn't productive, either, but now we can start straight away. With our combined effort, I'm sure we can discover something," suggested Scorpius, wanting the project to take his mind off things.

"Can't wait! Any excuse not to do History of Magic homework!" laughed Albus.

"Normally I would say something about that, but even I sleep in that class at times," sighed Scorpius. Albus just ended up laughing even harder in response.

The train arrived at the Hogwarts station and all the students filed off the train quickly, eager to arrive at the magical castle and to participate in the wondrous feast. Hagrid was seen in the same place as the year before, calling for all first years to follow him.

"What do we do as second years?" asked Duncan.

"There's some carriages that are supposed to take us up to the castle. I haven't the faintest idea where they are, though," answered Albus.

"I think that might be them," said Scorpius, pointing. As they got closer, they found a group of cartridges parked together near a gate.

"What's pulling them?" asked Duncan.

"Thestrals," answered Albus. "At least that's what Auntie Luna always told me."

"Why can't we see them?"

"You can only see Thestrals if you witness death," explained Scorpius.

"Your pa told you that?" asked Albus.

"Not exactly," shrugged Scorpius. "I read it in a book."

Albus rolled his eyes and mumbled, "Typical Scor," but his lips pulled back into a smile, betraying his amusement. He followed the rest of the group towards one of the carriages and climbed inside. They were met with Rose, Fred Weasley, Cedric, James, and Louis. "Do you have room for six more?" asked Albus.

"It'll be a bit of a tight fit, but-" started Fred, but he was cut off.

"Only if you can tell me if you have or haven't seen Janet," demanded Cedric. "We lost her in the crowd."

"Sorry, no," admitted Raven.

Rose bit her lips in worry. "Do you think she'll be okay?"

"Probably," said Scorpius as they all climbed inside. "She'll probably just take another carriage."

Rose blushed in embarrassment upon realizing her lapse in judgment. "Oh, okay."

There was a rap on the open door and everyone turned to see Brett standing there. "There you are, Jamie," said the sixth year, a smile on his face.

"Hi, Brett," deadpanned James. Louis and Albus flashed the older Potter boy a concerned look.

"Aw, come on! Is that any way to greet your friend who you haven't seen all summer? I'm in the carriage one over. Why don't you come?" taunted Brett with a grin.

James sighed. "Okay. I'm coming."

"Can I come, too?" asked Louis.

Brett rolled his eyes, but said, "If you really want to." James and Louis climbed out of the carriage after him, shutting the door behind them once they were out. After a minute, the carriages took off for Hogwarts castle. Albus sat there, chewing on his lips in worry. Scorpius looked at him in concern, wondering why Albus was so distressed. Albus saw Scorpius looking at him and just shook his head to tell the blonde that he didn't want to talk about it.

The carriage was silent as it headed towards the school. Most of the occupants were tired and wanted nothing more than to curl up in their warm beds. The excitement of seeing each other had worn off and they wanted to save any conversations for when they were well rested. Scorpius, the most exhausted of any of them, ended up passing out on Albus' shoulder. Albus was slightly embarrassed that his friend would do something like that in fear of the jests he would receive from the others, but made no move to push the blonde off. Regardless of anything Albus had expected, none of them paid Scorpius and Albus any mind. Rose, however, refused to look in their direction for the whole trip and instead peered out of the window.

Finally arriving at the castle, the nine occupants climbed out and made their way inside. Upon entering the Great Hall, Fred walked off to the Gryffindor table. Rose and Cedric ran towards a surprised Janet at the Ravenclaw table, screaming in glee at finding her. The rest of the group found their place at the Slytherin table.

The tables were very much bare, Albus noticed. Then, he remembered that they were to witness the sorting this year. The brunet turned to Scorpius and asked, "What do you suppose our new housemates will be like?"

Scorpius looked at him oddly. "Probably like the rest of us, but clueless. Besides, what about your family? I'm sure there will be another Slytherin somewhere."

Albus snorted. "Not very likely. I'm most likely the only one. We're a family of Gryffindors, after all. In any case, none of my family is to be sorted this year."

Scorpius grinned. "Really? I expected a new Potter-Weasley every year I'm here. You lot breed like rabbits." He got a punch in the arm from Albus in return, but that didn't dampen Scorpius' good mood.

The Great Hall soon became quiet as the headmistress, Professor Sprout, stood up to speak. "Everyone, welcome back to another year at Hogwarts. Very soon, we will begin the sorting and after that, the start-of-the-year feast. Your timetables will be passed out during the feast as usual. Before we begin, I would also like to take the time to introduce our new Transfiguration professor, Martha Williams. Professor Harkness has needed to take some time off because of personal reasons and Professor Williams is here to take her place."

A short woman with long, dark hair stood up. A shy smile was on her face as she scanned the crowd of students. "I'm honored to be teaching at this school and I hope to be a brilliant teacher for all of you, one that can live up to how wonderful Professor Harkness I'm sure was," she said and quickly sat back down.

"Something bad has happened to Professor Harkness. I can feel it," whispered Albus, a serious expression on his face. Scorpius gave him a weird look and chuckled, amused by his friend's bizarre theory.

"Without further ado, lets get to the sorting," said Professor Sprout. She walked back to her seat just as Professor Longbottom walked in with a gaggle of first years following behind him. The eleven-year-olds all looked nervous and half of them were fidgeting while staring awkwardly at each other. Scorpius and Albus both wondered if they had been like that the year before.

First year after first year was sorted. Scorpius didn't pay much attention, but he couldn't help but notice the students that were sorted into Slytherin. About four of them walked over with their heads held high, seeming to be proud about where they were placed. Even more looked absolutely nervous. The fact that they had heard the rumors about their house was written all over their face. One girl bounded over happily and began chatting animatedly to the random third year next to her.

The feast started and just like last year, Albus dived straight into the food. Scorpius didn't feel all that hungry, but he ended up eating a large plate full. After dinner, completely sated, Scorpius followed Albus up to the Slytherin common room and to their dorms. The two boys came to find that the old "First Year" sign had been replaced with a "Second Year" one, but otherwise their dormitory was exactly as they had left it the pervious year. Right outside their room was a pile of all six of their trunks.

Without even kicking off his trainers, Scorpius crashed onto his bed. He felt completely worn out and wanted nothing more than to fall into deep sleep. Suddenly, the door crashed open and the other four roommates spilled in, laughing and talking loudly. Scorpius groaned and rolled over to glare at them. "Shut up! I'm trying to sleep!" he huffed.

"Come on, Scorpius! You're ruining all the fun!" taunted Jude as he picked up a pillow and tossed it at the Malfoy. The pillow knocked into Scorpius' shoulder and rolled onto the bed.

With a sigh, Scorpius got up and sat down at the foot of the bed. In the bed next to him sat Albus with Duncan on the ground. Jude and the twins sat in the bed across from Albus. "We have class tomorrow. Is this really a good idea?" whined Scorpius.

"Relax a bit. We haven't seen each other in weeks. Don't you want to catch up?" offered Raven.

Scorpius stayed silent for a second. Then he answered, "I do, but I've had a long day. Tomorrow after class, okay?" He didn't wait for a response and just crawled back into the bed, closing the curtains. The whole time Albus watched the blonde; concern hidden behind what he hoped was a straight face.

**To ****Be ****Continued****…**

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><p><em>AN: Here we are at chapter 13, which I ironically started on September 1st and only finally posted it six weeks later. This is what a busy schedule does to you; no editing time. Whatever you do, don't ever be an overachiever. I think my schedule will clear up somewhat pretty soon, but it's still gonna be pretty hectic. _

_Here's to hopefully making next weeks "deadline"! And please review! Thanks so much!_


	15. A Boy Understands

**_Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. Raven and Jude belong to my friend, Nev. _**

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Chapter Fourteen: A Boy Understands**

Upon their return to Hogwarts, Scorpius and Albus quickly realized that they had missed the castle in more ways than one. The two boys, often accompanied by their other mates, quickly returned to running across the grounds and play wrestling. Within weeks of their return, the trees began their decent from green to brown and before they knew it, the boys found that they were running across piles of leaves instead of grass. In their adventures, Albus or Scorpius would catch the scent of a cooking fire and the two boys would seek refuge in Hagrid's hut.

A drastic change was seen in Scorpius' demeanor as the weeks went on. The boy grew happier and his shrunken in features began to go away. Albus decided it would be his own personal duty to make Scorpius happy and so he refused to leave his side. Scorpius didn't object to any of that because he wanted to spend time as much time with Albus as he could. The two of them quickly became even more inseparable than they were in their first year, if that was even possible.

When it came to their plan about trying to figure out gay people, Albus and Scorpius had turned to harassing the other students of Hogwarts. At first, the two of them had decided to question the only openly gay couple in the school, but the two girls refused to answer the questions and would scream profanities until Albus and Scorpius would walk away. Seeing that they wouldn't be able to get any answers from them, they started walking up to other students, but the results were mixed.

"Wait what? Why are you asking me? Go away, you second years!"

"Don't you try to ask me questions about fags!"

"Um… I don't know. Gay people are … you know… people who like people of the same gender," responded one girl. "It's not something I really think about, yeah?"

"But how does that work? How can you just like someone of the same gender?" asked Albus, his eyes wide as he stared at the girl.

"I don't know. You just do. It works the same as liking someone of the same gender," said the girl, growing quickly more irritated by the second.

"But why do some people like people of the opposite gender and some people like people of the same gender?" asked Scorpius.

"I don't know and I have to go. Ask someone else," said the girl and quickly walked away. Albus and Scorpius watched her go, disappointed expressions on their faces. They weren't any closer to their goal than when they started.

Having gone through much of the student body, they eventually arrived at Dominque Weasley. Albus didn't know how he managed to leave his cousin and Louis' other older sister for last, but she was the last person that the boys found themselves turning to. They found the sixth year Gryffindor sitting in the library with another girl, pondering over her Charms homework and running her hand through her short, brown hair out of frustration. "Hey, Dom! Mind if we ask you a few questions?" asked Albus, walking straight up to the girls with Scorpius in tow.

Dominique looked up from her homework and, with a smile, said, "Sure, Al. What's up?"

"Me and Scorp want to know about gay people. We're both really confused about them," admitted Albus.

"What do you want to know specifically?" asked Dominique as her friend lightly chuckled. Dominique gave her a quick glance, but otherwise the friend's response was gone unnoticed.

"Why would someone be gay?" asked Albus.

"It's not really a choice, Al. No one chooses to be gay, you know," explained Dominique.

"I get that. I mean what makes someone like someone of the same gender verses someone of the opposite gender like most people?"

"It just happens, Al. There's no reason for it. When you like a girl romantically for the first time, you'll understand that you can't control romantic feelings."

"So you're saying I won't ever understand until I like a girl?" asked Al, "but that doesn't make any sense! And why would I want to like a girl? The only girls I like are girls I am related to and that's just weird!"

"There's not a single girl you've met that you aren't related to?" asked Dominque, skeptically.

"Well, there is this girl in my house who's a year older and we're kinda friends. She's a bit weird, though. I don't want to marry her!" complained Albus.

Scorpius nodded. "Haley's a bit off her rocker, if you know what I mean."

Dominique laughed. "I'm sure you won't marry this girl, then. Just because you're friends with a girl doesn't mean you'll marry her or even have romantic feelings for her."

"Really? Good. I was getting a bit worried there," admitted Albus. "Thanks for everything, Dom! I think I understand a lot better now. I know I won't ever understand until I like a girl which would be never so I guess I'll never understand!"

"Well, I'm glad I could help," called Dominique after the two Second Years as they walked away. She sighed and shook her head in ammusement. Dominique turned back to the other girl who was grinning. "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"That was certainly interesting. Your cousin and his friend seem not to mind the idea of gay people," said the girl.

"Oh Hannah, don't start!" begged Dominique.

"I just think they and the rest of your family should know, that's all. I'm only willing to wait so long, yeah?" demanded Hannah. "We're keeping it a secret even in school, but I don't want it to be a secret forever. I think our families would make the most sense to start with, although I'm telling you this place isn't going to hate us. Those two Hufflepuff girls are already out, you know!"

"Well, Louis knows. Isn't that enough?" pleaded Dominique.

"What do you think the answer to that is?" said Hannah firmly. "You tell him everything, anyway. Plus, you and I both know he has some issues of his own to handle. What's the big deal in telling, anyway? I've met your family. Your parents are going to understand and your sister is going to be too busy snogging Teddy Lupin to care."

Dominique sighed. "It's just… I have some things to sort out, that's all. Lets just get back to this Charms work. I'd rather get this over with sooner rather than later."

Hannah sighed as a form of compliance, but the look she gave Dominique make it clear that their discussion was far from over.

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><p>Albus and Scorpius had all but given up on their researching quest, having decided that they had learned all that they could possibly learn about gay people. With their schedules finally free, they had decided, with Scorpius' insistance, to focus on school work. This surge of productivity lastes aproximently one week for Albus and afterwards the boys took to spending more time on the Quidditch pitch, something their roommates had insisted. True to their word, Jude and Duncan were still headstrong on making the Slytherin Quidditch team. Tryouts were two weeks away and even though Albus, Scorpius, Nate, and Raven weren't trying out, they still wanted to play Quidditch as much as they could. Almost every day after class, the six boys were out on the field, zipping back and forth. Well, almost everyone. Sitting on a broom still made Albus hurl, but Scorpius, Raven, and Nate wanted to help him almost as much as their other friends. The three boys split their time between training with Jude and Duncan and trying to get Albus to raise higher than a few feet off the ground. More often than not, it was Scorpius that was helping Albus rather than the twins.<p>

Tryouts arrived before they knew it and the six second years made it out to the pitch for a possible last time. The pitch was covered in Slytherins cluttered in groups, chattering together. In the center, the already instated members of the team were surrounding the Captain as he was bent over a piece of parchment. Duncan stood on the field, his hands pale white from his tight grip on the broom. Even the normally self-assured Jude was nervously running numbers through his head. They both knew that there was only three spots open on the team and it seemed that most of the house was trying out. The odds were not in their favor.

After a few minutes, the Captain called, "All those who are tryout out to the field. The rest of you, go somewhere else."

"Break a leg," said Nate, patting Jude on the shoulder and following his brother and friends to the stands. About half of the other Slytherins split off and followed the four second years into the stands. The odds seemed better, but still far from good.

"Right, now I want all of you to split off into the positions you are trying out for. Chasers to my right, Beaters to my left, and Keepers in front of me. If you want to try out for the position of Seeker, I don't know what you're doing here because that position is taken by me. After getting into your groups, form a single file line," ordered the Captain. The team hopefuls shuffled into their groups, Jude walking off to the Beater group after nodding to Duncan. Duncan, after glancing around awkwardly, shuffled over to the Keepers. He looked over to try and lock eyes with Jude, but the blonde was too busy talking to a smug third year and didn't look back.

Duncan found himself waiting two hours before it was finally his turn to try out. Jude, who was still waiting to go, flashed him a thumbs up. From the stands, Duncan heard his roommates cheering. Trying to stiffle his nerves, Duncan rose up in the air and floated in front of the three goal posts. Before Duncan knew it, Quaffles were chucked at him. Duncan lunged at the first Quaffle and, thinking fast, he slammed the Quaffle in the other direction. He saw another coming from the corner of his eye and flew towards it, slamming his palm into the ball. The Quaffle sailed towards the opposite end of the pitch. Adrenaline took over and Duncan found himself charging after all the balls, hitting every one. After he stopped the last one, Duncan touched down, his face all smiles. The Captain was the first one out of his shock and he called Duncan over. "Marks, right? My name's Bevan Morgan."

"Yeah, I know. How did I do?" asked Duncan, excitement written all over his face.

"I think we're all impressed. How would you like to have a possition as a Beater?" asked the Captain, his smile betraying his amusement of the second year's behavior.

"Beater? But I tried out for Keeper," responded Duncan, clearly confused.

"Yeah, you did, but I think you are much suited for the position of Beater," answered Bevan. "Is that a problem?"

"No, not at all. Beater works, too," said Duncan, smiling.

"Then welcome to the team, Duncan Marks," said Bevan, extending out his hand. Duncan took it and the two males shared a firm handshake. Then, Duncan bounded over to Albus, Scorpius, Raven, and Nate who were watching the exchange intently.

"Well? We all want to know how you did!" demanded Albus.

"I made the team!" yelled Duncan, pride and glee coursing through him.

"Alright, Duncan! We knew you could do it!" cheered Nate, pulling Duncan into a congradulatory hug.

Duncan heard stomping feet behind him and the boys looked up to see a dissapointed looking Jude. He glared up at his friends and moved to walk past them. Scorpius called out, "So how did you do, Jude?"

Jude turned to glare at Scorpius and said, "I clearly made the team, what do you think?"

"Sorry, man. Maybe next year?" offered Duncan.

"Yeah, well, whatever. Have fun being Keeper," grumbled Jude, sitting down in the stands next to Albus.

Duncan looked awkwardly at him before saying, "Well, actually they said I would make a better Beater so I guess I'm not going to be Keeper."

Jude glared at him before picking up his Beater bat and chucking it as hard as he could at Duncan. Duncan moved out of the way and the bat missed him by meer centimeters. It landed in the seat in front of them with a crash. Albus, Scorpius, Nate, Raven, and Duncan stared in shock at the bat and then at Jude. "What the bloody hell is wrong with you?" demanded Duncan.

"You'll be needing that, now that you're Beater and all. It's not like that was the position I wanted or anything," spat Jude. He stood up and stormed out of the pitch. Duncan stared after him, gaping like a fish.

"He's just angry and taking it out on you. He'll get over it in a few days. You'll see," said Scorpius, trying to reassure his friend.

"Shouldn't one of us at least try to calm him down?" asked Duncan skeptically.

Scorpius shook his head. "Nah. Just let him brood. I think he needs some time alone. Lets go celebrate."

The five boys snuck into the kitchens and brought back as much snacks as they could carry. They laid the food out on a table in the Common Room and proceeded to pack in as much as they could. Mid-feast, Haley even walked over and joined them upon Albus' invitation. This was naturally followed by taunts from Nate, Raven, and Duncan, but Albus, Haley, and Scorpius just told them to piss off. As they were wrapping up their party, Albus noticed a figure standing behind him. He turned around to see Jude standing there, glaring at them.

"Oh hey, Jude. Glad you could join us! Want a biscuit?" said Albus, offering the treat to his friend. Jude slapped the biscuit out of Albus' hand and it crumbled to the floor. Albus looked oddly at Jude, but Jude pushed past him before he could say anything and stomped up to the dormitory.

"Still think he's just brooding?" asked Duncan.

**To Be Continued...**

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><p><em>AN: I'm back! Well, sort of. School has been a bit hectic and I won't promise anymore about when I'm going to update. I was doing okay, but then NaNoWriMo happened so I took a break from this story to work on that (despite never finishing the actual novel haha) and then school related stuff happened. It's break now, but break is almost over and who knows when I'll update again? However, I want to try and build the side characters for a bit so the story might take a slight detour from focusing on Albus and Scorpius a bit. They'll still be in the story, but the other characters are going to be involved more. _

_Thanks for reading! Please review and I hope this chapter wasn't a big disappointment after so much waiting. _


	16. A Boy Wins

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J. K. Rowling. Jude belongs to my friend, Nev. **_

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Chapter Fifteen: A Boy Wins**

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><p>Duncan had been used to getting the short end of the stick in life. From a single mother who cared far more about her many male conquests to always being seen as the idiot in class, Duncan was slowly preparing himself for disappointment in life. Then, on his eleventh birthday, a letter had changed his life. At first, he had thought it was a hoax, a silly little prank by some of the neighbors' kids, but then it was real. Suddenly, he wasn't just some dumb-as-bricks kid with a negligent mum. Suddenly, he was magic. It didn't matter that he wasn't too smart in class. No matter the grades, <em>he was magic<em>. That wasn't something that the neighbors' kids could say, now could they?

Then there was Quidditch. That first time he sat on a broom in first year, he knew he was in love. He wasn't too shabby either. There was Albus Potter, who apparently came from some famous wizarding family who were all brilliant at the sport, and he couldn't even sit on a broom without hurling. Duncan flew better than Albus Potter and not just Albus Potter, but a good percent of the rest of the class. For once, Duncan wasn't the laughing stock of everyone.

After becoming a Beater for the Slytherin Quidditch team, Duncan knew that he would never again be looked down at. He also knew that Jude would eventually get over the fact that Duncan had made the team instead of him. How stubborn could the blonde be?

The problem was that it was two weeks after tryouts and Jude still refused to talk to him. He had returned to being on speaking terms with Albus, Scorpius, and the twins, but little more than necessary was said to Duncan.

Practices themselves were brutal and Duncan found himself often not making it up to his dormitory and just collapsing on one of the very comfortable couches in the common room. That was quickly prompted by Scorpius and Albus bringing him snacks and hot chocolate that they had pilfered from the kitchens in moments of boredom. Turns out the elves didn't say anything to you if your last name was Potter and you wanted multiple boxes of cookies, hot cocoa mix, and a kettle. Of course, the invisibility cloak helped, but Albus didn't exactly need it to get what he wanted.

Regardless of the possible snacks he could receive after, Duncan loved Quidditch practice. When he had a broom in his hand, he was unstoppable.

The first game of the season was coming up and Slytherin was to play Gryffindor. Bevan wanted the first game of the year to show just how formidable of a team Slytherin really was. Gryffindor was often the winner of many Quidditch Cups at Hogwarts, but Bevan's goal was to give them a run for their money before he graduated. He had the team up at the crack of dawn and they were playing well into the night on days they didn't have class.

Before Duncan knew it, game day was actually rolling around. The idea of having to sit on a broom in front of the whole school terrified him. Everyone would be watching him play. Duncan stood in the locker room, clutching his broom as the rest of his team ran about trying to get any last minute strategies together. As the first one changed, the youngest, and the most nervous, Duncan stood in the corner of the room and tried to keep out of everyone's way.

Suddenly, Duncan heard someone call his name and he looked up. His friends were standing at the door of the locker room, waving to him. They all had bright smiles on their faces. Duncan ran over to them and said, "Guys, what are you all doing here?"

"Wishing you good luck, of course!" yelled Albus, punching him in the arm. "Knock them dead, mate! Show my brother that Slytherin isn't to be messed with!"

"We couldn't leave you all alone, shacking in your boots before the first game," said Nate while laughing.

"I am certainly not shaking and far from alone," retorted Duncan, but his smile betrayed how happy he was to see them. The four other boys pulled him into a bone crushing hug and he couldn't help but laugh and be thankful that his friends had come to see him.

Duncan suddenly pulled back and asked, "Where's Jude?"

The four other Slytherins looked at each other awkwardly and then Scorpius said, "I don't know. Last time I saw him, he had sulked off somewhere into the crowd. He's still a bit sore about not making the team and all."

Duncan nodded. "I supposed it would be stupid to expect him to be here," he said with a sigh. Duncan heard someone call his name farther in the depths of the locker room and he turned around with a gulp. "Well, that's my call. I'll see you guys after the match."

As he walked away from his friends, Duncan couldn't help but look back and watch them disappear. He knew that everything rested on this game. As a second year, he was the least respected member of the team. To gain the respect of his teammates and the rest of his house, he would need to prove himself during the game. He couldn't help but imagine how much everyone would hate him if he messed up.

"Duncan, stop looking like a starry-eyed first year! We're heading out onto the pitch!" yelled Bevan, snapping Duncan out of his trance with a start. The second year quickly grabbed his bat and sprinted after his team onto the field.

Across the field, Duncan saw the scarlet ropes of the Gryffindor team. Just like the Slytherin team, the captain was in the lead with the other members following. Duncan was able to spot Albus' older brother, James, in the middle of the group. It wasn't much of a feat, however, as the boy had turned into a beanstalk over the summer.

"Captains, shake hands!" ordered Madam Hooch, her voice cutting through the pitch. Bevan stuck his hand out and the Gryffindor captain took it, the two boys giving each other firm shakes. Then, they stepped back and before Duncan knew what was happening, he was kicking off into the sky with the rest of his team. A sharp whistle ripped through the air, signaling the start of the game.

Duncan held a firm grip on his beater bat and he flew through the air, keeping his eyes pealed for the Bludgers. He saw one fly towards his left so he swerved, slamming his bat into the side and sending it towards the head of a nearby Gyrffindor Chaser. Out of the corner of his eye, Duncan saw the girl just make it out of the way of the oncoming iron ball.

Suddenly, there was a loud cheer and the peppy Hufflepuff girl who was narrating the match screamed, "James Potter scores! Ten points to Gryffindor!" Duncan mentally groaned. Five minutes hadn't even passed and Slytherin was already down.

Gryffindor scored another three times before Slytherin was even on the board. When Bevan finally called time out after almost an hour of play, the score was 100 – 30 Gryffindor. The two teams landed on the ground and Bevan pulled the other Slytherin Quidditch players into a huddle. "Okay, I know it looks like we can't come out from this, but keep focus. We can still win this. Moss, Bletchley, Higgs, makes sure you keep possession. Scoring points is important, but not as important as keeping Gryffindor from scoring right now. We can still win. Goyle, Marks, keep those Bludgers away the rest of us. The last thing we need is someone getting blasted off their broom. We need to show Gryffindor that they can't win the match without a fight!"

With that, the team broke apart and they were back in the air. Duncan flew along side the Chasers, making sure to protect them. The three Chasers flew down the field, tossing the Quaffle between each other. They advanced across the field. Duncan saw a Bludger advancing towards Alan Higgs and he flew up to the Chaser's side, slamming the ball out of the way. Alan gave Duncan a nod of thanks and then sped on ahead. Then suddenly-

"Venus Bletchley scores! Ten points to Slytherin!" screamed the Hufflepuff girl, her voice ripping through the field. Screams of triumph was heard throughout the Slytherins. Maybe there was hope after all.

With Matthew Goyle and Duncan doubling their efforts and the Slytherin Chasers making sure to keep the Quaffle in their possession, the team was able to quickly catch up with the Gryffindors. The other team was still significantly in the lead, the score 140 – 90 Gryffindor. It was at that moment that Duncan started to wonder about the Snitch. They had to have been playing for a good three hours by that point.

Duncan noticed Bevan dive down sharply, clearly having spotted the snitch. Across the pitch, the Gryffindor Seeker noticed Bevan's decent and sharply dived down towards where Bevan was heading. Out of the corner of his eye, Duncan noticed a Bludger quickly advancing on the Slytherin Seeker. Even if Bevan noticed it, there was nothing he could do. If he moved out of the way, the Gryffindor Seeker would have a clear shot at the Snitch and Gryffindor would win the game. It was now or never for Slytherin.

Duncan knew what he had to do. He pushed his broom as fast as it could go. He needed to get between Bevan and the Bludger no matter what. Gripping his bat so hard that his hands turned white, he advanced. Forty meters, thirty meters, twenty meters, ten meters-

The weight of what he imagined being twenty elephants slammed into Duncan. He found himself falling backwards off the broom. He tasted blood in his mouth and then all was dark.

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><p>Duncan couldn't help but wonder if he was dead. He seemed to be floating on a cloud. A sugary scent filled his nostrils and he hypothesized that he was, in fact, sitting on a cloud of cotton candy. He hadn't had any cotton candy since the summer when the annual faire had returned to his neighborhood. He remembered the delicious, gooey taste in his mouth. He wondered if this was heaven because it was certainly a decent way of spending the rest of existence.<p>

Suddenly, a piercing white light filled his vision. He wondered if he was going to meet God. In that moment, he wondered whether or not the Wizarding world had a deity. He regretted not asking, but he supposed he could always question God on the matter. Well, if that was allowed.

The light engulfed him and Duncan prepared for his fate. When the light faded, he found himself on his back, staring up at some rafters. "What happened to heaven?" mumbled Duncan, having little idea of where he was.

"You're alive!" yelled a voice which Duncan recognized to be Albus. Duncan turned his head and saw the grinning face of his friend. Then, he looked around to see a large crowd standing around his bed. Among them were his roommates, his teammates, and even Rose. On the cabinet next to the bed was a mountain of sweets gifted to him.

"What happened?" asked Duncan weakly. He felt like he had been mauled repeatedly for the past few days.

"You got hit with a Bludger and passed out for six hours! We were scared you wouldn't make it," answered Scorpius.

Dejectedly, Duncan asked, "So we lost?"

Bevan leaned over and placed something in Duncan's hand. "I believe this belongs to you. That is, until I have to return it, but if it wasn't for you, that Bludger would have hit me and cost us the game. We won, thanks to you," he said, grinning madly.

"We won? We actually won? We defeated Gryffinor?" gasped Duncan, his mouth wide open in shock. He looked at what Bevan had given to him and it was the Golden Snitch from his first Quidditch match.

"Yes. First time in about ten years," said Venus.

"I certainly didn't expect that from you. Way to go, Duncan," said Jude. Duncan turned his head to look at his blonde roommate, eyes wide in shock.

"You're not mad at me anymore?" asked Duncan.

"I was, but that was some playing, mate. I can't exactly stay peeved anymore," answered Jude. "It was a stupid reason to be mad, anyway." Duncan grinned and then awkwardly sat up, pulling Jude into a tight hug as best as he could. Jude was shocked, but hugged back as best as he could without hurting him.

"I'm sorry I was such a stubborn arse about it, too," admitted Duncan, releasing his friend from the hug.

"All right you all. Clear out. Mr. Marks needs his rest and you're disturbing him," called the voice of Madam Pomfrey, breaking the happy, peaceful moment. Within seconds, the matron appeared and shooed out Duncan's visitors.

The last thing that Duncan heard was Bevan calling, "When you get out of here, we're going to throw a party in the Common Room! You better be there!" With that, it was once again quite.

Despite being alone, Duncan couldn't help but grin. For once in his life, people didn't think he was a loser.

**To Be Continued…**

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><p><em>AN: Hello human beings. To anyone who's actually still hanging on to this story, yes I have updated. Hopefully not too long of a wait this time, right? And I know that this chapter doesn't have a lot of Albus and Scorpius, but I believe I said before that I want to focus on side characters a bit. If I didn't say it before, then I'm saying it now. After all, there's not much development that can happen in their relationship at the present time. _

_Hopefully, it won't be too long of a wait until the next chapter. I currently have spring break so I hope to release at least one more chapter before it ends, but don't hold me to it. I have AP work I need to do, too. _

_Please review. I want your input. _


	17. A Boy Explores

**_Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J. . Jude and Raven belong to my friend, Nev._**

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><p><strong>Children of Lies<strong>

**Chapter Sixteen: A Boy Explores**

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><p>Much to the Slytherin team's happiness, Quidditch practice became much more relaxed after the mind-blowing victory against Gryffindor. The only match before the Winter Hols was Ravenclaw verses Hufflepuff and since Slytherin wasn't playing until January, Bevan had no reason to force his team to stick to their rigorous training schedule until after term restarted. For this reason, the team met only once a week. This gave Duncan much more free time, an amount of free he hadn't faced in a long while. Scorpius recommended that Duncan spend the time studying seeing as his marks weren't what they should be. The twins suggested they explore the castle. Naturally, Duncan decided that it was a better use of his time and Jude was insistently on board. After some slight hesitation, Albus was, too. They could stay away from the Divination classroom. As for Scorpius, he found that he was being dragged along against his will. Well, he supposed it wasn't really against his will since it didn't take much coercion from Albus for him to agree.<p>

On most days when they didn't have class, Albus would pull out his Invisibility Cloak from his trunk and they would disappear into the castle. On one such day in early December, the boys decided to find out exactly what was in the dungeons they lived near. The Second Year Slytherins had their Common Room and dormitories in the dungeons, but they had seen little more of them aside from the Potion's classroom. Raven, with a sly grin, had approached the rest of them during breakfast that morning, suggesting they finally figure out what was in them. Haley had looked up at Raven with a skeptical expression, but she quickly went back to reading her magazine. Raven, deciding that her vote didn't count since she wasn't coming, was met with a unanimous positive response.

The boys quickly stuffed down their meals and ran out of the Great Hall, heading straight to the dungeons. Raven and Nate wore matching grins as they excitingly conversed about what they might discover.

"Oh! What if they have a werewolf chained down there?" gasped Nate, wide eyed.

"No way! Not after all those new laws that were enacted! I think Hogwarts would be shut down if that happened and people found out," retorted Raven at his brother.

"Hey, Al! Isn't your family mates with a werewolf?" asked Nate.

"Yeah! Teddy Lu-"

"Yeah, see! The Potters would probably go bonkers! The last thing that Hogwarts needs is Mr. Potter's anger!" pointed out Nate.

"Okay fine! Not a werewolf then. How about a Boggart?" suggested Raven.

"Ohhh! I can whip out my wand and show it whose boss!" bragged Nate, plugging out his wand and waving it over his head.

As the twins got caught up in their dialogue, Duncan turned to his other dormmates and asked, "What's a Boggart?"

"It's a magical creature that turns into your worst fear," explained Scorpius. "Apparently we'll learn about them in Defense. Dad said so, anyway."

Albus nodded. "My Dad said that his professor in third year brought one in."

"Well, then they can't be that dangerous if a teacher was allowed to bring one into a classroom of third years," scoffed Duncan.

"Yeah? Well then maybe you should fight one!" joked Jude, elbowing Duncan in the side. Duncan was about to make a retort, but couldn't when he found himself crashing into Nate. Jude and Albus moved to stabilize Duncan, just managing to stop their dormmate from falling onto the ground.

"Aye! What was that for?" Duncan yelled as he fixed his footing.

"We're in the dungeons," stated Raven. "Nate and I figured we'd want to agree on a direction to head in."

Duncan, Jude, Albus, and Scorpius looked around and confirmed that they were, in fact, where Raven said they were. The four boys had lost themselves in their conversation and had blindly followed the twins, not at all paying attention to where they were heading. The dungeons were completely dark, save for some oil lamps floating in midair, and the four of them barely notice three hallways branching out ahead of them. One of the hallways was easily recognizable as the one heading towards the Slytherin Common Room. They knew the second to lead to the Potions Classroom. The third was one they had not gone down before, although they passed it often in the past.

Jude was the first to speak. "I say we head that way," he said, pointing to the unfamiliar hallway. The other five boys nodded and started walking. As they kept going, the hallway kept getting narrower until they were forced to walk single file. Finally, they managed to reach the end. Nate, who was in front, reached over and felt against the wall. His hand grazed a door handle and he stepped back, contemplating what he should do.

"What wrong?" asked Scorpius, his face wearing the same mask of confusion as all the other boys.

"There's a door here," said Nate.

"Well open it! We don't have all day," ordered Jude.

Nate nodded, grasped the door handle, and pulled. The door didn't open very easily, but when it finally did, all they could see was a dark room. Nate, Raven, Jude, Duncan, and Albus walked forward into the room. Scorpius, wide eyed, grabbed for Albus' arm and pulled him back while screaming, "Stop! Don't go in there!" There was a loud scream that Scoprius recognized as Duncan's. Instantly, panic washed over Scorpius and he clung tigher to Albus' arm. He couldn't see any of his other friends as they had all walked into the room already. The blonde fumbled for his wand and, finally managing to pull it out, screamed, "_Lumos!_" He stuck his wand tip into the dark room and it instantly lit up.

"Bloody hell, Scorpius! Are you trying to give me permanent eye damage?" hissed Nate, covering his eyes from the light. Scorpius looked around the room and his panic quacking dissipated. His four other dormmates were standing around in the room, clear as day. He tentatively released Albus and, after taking a deep breath, was about to step inside when something dawned on him. Why had Duncan screamed?

Scorpius whipped his head around and gasped. All across the walls of the room was a green, glowing goo. Scorpius had no idea what it was, but it couldn't be safe. "Wait! Stop! You don't know what that stuff is!" screamed Scorpius. He grabbed for Albus' arm, for he was still the closest, and tried to pull him back.

"Scorp, let go! The others are fine! It's probably harmless!" cried Albus, trying to shake off his panicking best friend, but Scorpius held on with a vice-like grip.

"Well, why did Duncan scream?" retorted Scorpius.

"Mate, I was shocked!" called Duncan. "The goo is fine! Listen to Al!"

"I still don't like this," said Scorpius.

"Well, then you don't have to go in, but let me go! I'll be fine! Everyone else is-" said Albus, but he was cut off when a loud shriek was heard. Scorpius and Albus whipped around just in time to see Nate get pulled to the ground. Scorpius and Albus were the first to act. They leaped into the room, rushing towards their fallen dormmate. Despite their efforts, Raven was closer and beat them. He reached for his twin and managed to grab Nate's hand. Scorpius and Albus made it and grabbed ahold of Nate as well. Scorpius could hear Duncan and Jude behind them and it was a matter of seconds before they too managed to make it over to Nate.

"Don't you dare let go of me!" screamed the twin.

"Wouldn't dream of it!" yelled Raven, hoping that it made his brother feel better.

Suddenly, Scorpius felt Albus' presence next to him disappear. The blond spun his head around and heard his friend scream, "Scorp! Help! It's got me!" Albus was being dragged away by an unseen force, probably the same force that had attached itself to Nate. The brunet was grappling for Scorpius and Scropius was forced to release Nate. He grabbed for Albus' arm and held on as tight as he could. Scorpius desperately wished he had his wand, but he had dropped it when it had grabbed for Nate. In any case, he knew there would be no way he could hold onto Albus with only one hand. As it was, they were already slipping across the floor.

"I should have listened to you, Scorp! We all should have! You're brilliant and I'm stupid for not remembering that!" cried Albus.

"Don't say that! I've got you! Just don't let go of me!" screamed Scorpius. As he said it, he could feel vines wrapping around his legs. It would only be a matter of seconds until he lost his footing and the both of them would be dragged off.

"_Defodio!_" The voice blasted through the room and suddenly Scorpius felt himself being released. He fell into a sitting position and pulled Albus into a hug, relieved that they were still alive. Albus hugged back and pressed his face into Scorpius' shoulder, his heart hammering in his chest. He had been so terrified. Whoever had cast that spell had saved their life.

"Can one of you please tell me what you all are doing here?" called out a voice that Albus recognized as Professor Williams'. The brunet lifted his head up and squinted, his Transfiguration teacher coming into view.

"Professor…?" Albus weakly said.

With a brisk walk, the professor crossed the room and grabbed Albus by the arm, hoisting him up. Then, she leaned over and grabbed Scorpius' by the ear. She turned to look at the other four boys and said, "To my office. Now."

While she dragged Scorpius and Albus out of the room, Duncan, Jude, and the twins followed behind dutifully. Professor Williams led them up to the ground floor and to the Transfiguration wing. They walked past classroom upon classroom. The six boys expected her to drag them into one of the classrooms since they had never been in the Transfiguration office even when Professor Harkness had been teaching. Professor Williams had spent very little time decorating the classroom, the extent of her decorations being a few sporadic plants. When the professor finally dragged them into her office, the first thing they noticed was one thing: plants covered almost every centimeter of the office.

Professor Williams sat down and stared at the boys from across her desk. "What do you think you were doing? As second years, you should know that you shouldn't go into unknown areas of the castle. You could have died!"

The Slytherins were silent for sometime, letting their teacher's words sink in. Then, Scorpius said, "Ma'am, what was that in the dungeon?"

"It shouldn't matter what that was! It's none of your-" screamed Professor Williams, but then she stopping. Instead, she said, "That is a personal project of mine that I am conducting with permission from Professor Sprout. Don't go down there again. Do you understand?"

Scropius bowed his head. "Yes, ma'am," he mumbled. The other five repeated Scorpius' words. Professor Williams waved her arm, making it clear that they were to leave. The six boys turned around and walked out of the room, breaking into a sprint as soon as they would outside. As soon as the last boy had left, the door was closed with a slam. The Slytherins ran down to the dungeon, this time ignoring the unfamiliar hallway. They headed towards their common room and, when reaching the door, screamed the password. The door to the Common Room swung open and they stumbled inside. Nate was the first in the door and he tripped over his own two feet, falling flat on his face. His dormmates ended up falling over as well, creating a man pile in front of the door.

"Well well well. Look who it is." The boys looked up to see Haley standing there with a smirk. "Had fun exploring?"

Raven ignored her and pulled a wand out of his pocket. He passed it over to Scoprius and said, "This is yours. I found it under my foot back in the dungeon." Then, he, Duncan, Jude, and Nate pushed past Haley and headed towards the dormitory.

Albus watched them leave and mumbled something along the lines of, "It was great," to Haley. Then, he followed Scorpius over to one the couches as the Malfoy tried to clean some of the goo from his wand.

**To Be Continued…**

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><p><em>AN: Hey guys! Long time no update! Sorry about that... but I'm going to try and post some more chapters in the near future. I want to try and get to chapter 20 by the end of July. I don't know how well that's going to happen, but fingers crossed! _

_I hope you enjoyed this. Please review and tell me what you think! _


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